The Triwizard Tournament
by The Blade of Osh-Tekk
Summary: Book Four of the Muggle Student series. The Triwizard Tournament. Honestly, our Muggle student could care less about it. But unfortunately, he finds that because of someone's interference, he's going to have to get a lot more involved in this tournament than he wants to; not knowing the dark intent meant behind putting Harry in the Tournament... T for now. Rating may change.
1. Chapter 1 - To France

A/N: We're starting this up! Why so early? Cause I believe that I'm going to have the most fun on this book out of all of them. It's more than likely I am. Note that whenever I italicize, I'm saying stuff in a different language. It's primarily going to be French.

* * *

 _"Just once... If you feel as if you can manage it, can you visit? I don't want to have to say goodbye."_

The words rang inside my head like a constant echo down a cave as I distractedly ate my food where I sat. Today was as good a time was any. Especially since it was _her_ birthday.

"Dad, you ok?" Harry asked, halting in his eating and looking up at me. I looked at my food a little while longer. I pretended like I didn't hear him until I made up my mind.

"I'm going to France today," I said, pushing my plate away from me.

"May I ask why?" Harry asked.

"You'll find out why. You can come with me. Sirius, I don't know if the French authorities are wary of you, so it might be best if you stay here," I told the man in question. But it was more of an excuse for him not to to come rather than a reason why he shouldn't come.

"Ah, that's ok. Go on and have yourself a good time," Sirius said, waving a good natured hand before a grin crossed his face. "Are you visiting some exotic hottie that you know?"

"I'm certainly visiting someone," I said evenly, standing up from my seat and walking off. Harry quickly followed behind me as I moved to get into my jet.

"Who are you visiting?" he asked. I climbed inside the first seat of my jet and he climbed into the second available seat.

"You'll see," I told him without emotion just before the hatch doors closed. The moment we took off towards the destination I had in mind, my thoughts immediately became occupied. It had been years since we last met. Not since after Gwen.

I closed my eyes tightly. It may have sounded pathetic, but the very thought of her was bringing bad memories up again. But just like my parents, I figured the best way to get over what happened was to actually deal with it instead of running from it like I used to always do when it came to personal problems.

The trip was silent, but cause of my jet's fast speed, it took barely any time at all. Even considering we were in the same continent. Hopefully they hadn't already departed from where they lived.

When I landed in their front yard, the very same guards that I had posted in front of the house were extremely surprised to see a jet that seemed to move at the speed of sound, but quieter than the air around us land in front of them.

I hopped out of the jet and stood up straight. The guards took one look at me and looked extremely surprised. But the surprise quickly turned into respectful bows.

 _"Mr. Morgan. I never thought we'd see you around here again,"_ one of them said in French as I walked up to him.

"To be honest, neither did I. But I'm here to see Mom and Dad. Or at least the closest things to them that I have in this world," I told the guard. He nodded.

"You caught them a few minutes early. Vigilante or no, we're always glad to have you here," the man said, leading me towards the mansion that I had landed in front of. Though when it came to the vast size of it, palace was a more accurate description. The French President lived good.

As the guard was leading us towards the mansion's front doors, I noticed that Harry was looking at me with a state of shock.

"Yes?" I questioned.

"These people know who you are?" he asked, gesturing to the guards posted all over the place.

"The very few that do. This bunch are the only ones that I can truly trust. They were my squadron when I was defending the French President. I had become close to them in that meanwhile. There's a lot of stuff that happened to me that you wouldn't expect. Hell, a lot of it is stuff _I_ didn't expect when I first got into this business. But this visit has been long overdue," I told him. Harry nodded and didn't press further. He knew things would come to light gradually and wanted to take it one step at a time. I definitely respected that.

I walked inside the doors of the mansion and looked all around the vast main hall. Everything was exactly as I remembered it. Down to the last detail. And that's super accurate when you've got a dude with eidetic memory doing the analyzing.

I walked into the living room and saw that two people were sitting on the couch, dressed in black and talking in voices that were almost whispers, but were not quite. It's not a situation of wanting to keep their conversation quiet. It was just the emotions in the air at the time affecting their voices.

 _"Almost ready to leave?"_ the woman asked.

 _"Shortly,"_ the man said in a gruff tone.

"I certainly hope you have room for two more?" I asked suddenly. Though my voice didn't come out as confident as I would've liked. It was more like a croak.

The two of them turned to face me and I could see shock instantly resister on their faces. I walked up in front of the couch and I was instantly tackled by the woman. I hugged her tightly. As much as she was a painful reminder of Gwen, I couldn't deny that I missed her. Her and Armand.

"You came," she said.

"I never thought I would. But I did. It was cowardly of me to run, I know that. But..."

"You don't have to apologize for anything, _mon fils._ What happened hurt you deeply. I know that," she said before backing up from the hug long enough to put her hands on my face and get a good look at me. "Still as handsome as ever."

"Thank you. You maintained your beauty as well. You look just like her too," I said with a small smile. Though it was slightly watery.

"Well, she maintained my personality," Armand said with a slightly defensive tone. I laughed lightly as I turned to face him.

"You were always the jealous type Papa. Though you acted a lot like her at times, and you could say that was the personality I fell in love with," I said before quickly pointing at him with a joking serious look on my face. "Uh, don't get any ideas. You're not my type."

Laughter rang out throughout the entire room, coming from four different voices. Of course, Harry's laughter is what prompted Angelique to address him.

"Well, well. Who is this handsome young man you have with you?" she asked, moving over to Harry.

"This is Harry. My adopted son. Though we are family in everything but blood. I can assure you of that," I told her with a prideful smile.

"I'm glad you found something else to love," Angelique said with a wide smile.

"Of course he loves me. How can you not love this face?" Harry said, pointing to his own face. I barked out a laugh among Angelique's and Armand's laughter.

"Don't push yourself too much kid. You'll find I have ways to do most things that I want to do," I told him. Harry gave me an innocent smile and Angelique and Armand smiled at him.

"I can see why you've grown fond of this child. It's hard not to like him. He's a lot like you. Though younger and a lot less rough around the edges," Armand said.

"Yup. I'm attempting to teach him everything I know. He'll be one bad son of a bitch when I'm done with him if you would pardon my french," I said with a deliberate grin.

"That was not French!" Angelique exclaimed.

"Depends on how you look at it," I said cheekily, making Armand and Harry laugh. Angelique swatted me on the back of my head like I was a child again, making me grin. That was a bit of my life I hadn't really been able to live to the fullest.

 _"Tu es impossible!"_ she exclaimed before her tone turned soft. "Are you ready to go?" The smile on my face faded almost instantly, but I steeled my nerves more than I ever have before.

"Yeah. I'm ready," I said softly. The two lead the way out of the door and guards followed the car we drove in. I looked down at the ground with my elbows on my knees as I was leaning forward with my legs parted. I knew once I got there, I was going to break down. But I didn't care. I had to get this deep feeling of failure out of me. It was in my mind, heart, and soul.

"Why are there so many guards following us?" Harry asked.

"Robert's insistence," Angelique said, saying my name in the French form. "After he left, he didn't want anything to happen to us. So the squad assigned to protect us during an incident a few years ago, he also trained while he was keeping us safe. They became our permanent legion of bodyguards. He pays them royally."

"If anything happened to you, the pain on me would be stacked several times more. I had to make sure you would be safe if I couldn't be there to protect you," I told them.

"We understand. We understood a long time ago why you did what you did," Armand said. I nodded solemnly before looking back down at the ground.

The car stopped after a few minutes. I stepped out with a hint of perspiration on the side of my face, nervous about what I was about to face within myself when I stepped out of these doors and stood before her grave. I was expecting the worst, cause I knew that the sight was going to hit me hard.

I walked with a heavy burden in my steps; my feet dragging a lot slower than normal. I was not looking forward to seeing her grave. Even all the death I had seen before didn't compare to this feeling. But then I felt a soft hand touch my shoulder.

"It's alright _mon fils._ We'll be here with you," Angelique said. I nodded and swallowed hard before walking forward at a slightly faster pace, Armand, Harry, and the guards trailing behind us. Even after all this years, I could still remember the exact place where her grave was. Of course, how could I forget?

Then we reached it. Now, instead of my feet feeling like they were made of lead, they felt like they were made of jelly and my feet buckled as I had to put an arm on the ground to stop myself from falling on the ground.

Gwendolyn Adele Moreau

July 13, 1973 - March 31, 1989

Beloved Daughter and Dearest Love

 _"Let your light shine bright even death. Now and forever."_

I had a lot to do with how the gravestone turned out. The quote was mine. Because at the time, that's exactly what she was to me. My dearest love. A bright light amidst the chaos. A pure soul in a sinful graveyard.

"She was your love," Harry said in a subdued tone, putting a hand on my shoulder. I looked to the side and down on the ground as I could not bear to look at the tombstone anymore.

"The only one I had. There was just something about her that was... irresistible," I said, a memorable tone taking hold. "As beautiful and curious as her mother, but as stubborn and kind-hearted as her father." Her sharp scream pierced my thoughts in a flashback, and I gripped my head tightly. It was weird how my memories acted like a volatile bomb; ready to explode at any time. Unpredictable and violent.

"She loved you. I know that. I know you, and I'm sure if she did as well, there's no way she couldn't have," Harry said. Tears began to well in my eyes, but I smiled all the same.

"I know she did. And I loved her too. At first when she died, I tried to convince myself that what we had was a little fling. Just something that I wanted in the moment to distract myself so it would hurt less. Since it didn't take long for me to grow attracted to her, I figured it would be easier to convince myself. I failed. And I'm glad I didn't resort to that. It'd be a disrespect to her love, and I'm definitely not going to stand for that," I said firmly, gripping my right hand tightly. "But you try to live and love while living the life that I do, and you eventually learn the consequences."

"Bad things happen to good people. That's how the world works. But eventually you'll find your happy ending," Harry said.

"Well said. Your first step in that has to be about letting her go. Don't forget about her, but let her go," Armand said.

"And how am I suppose to do that?" I asked.

"For starters, find a woman that's compatible for you. Focus on her. Get to know her like you did Gwendolyn. Once you grow fond of her, you'll find that what you lost will hurt less and you'll truly be on the road to healing," Armand explained. "I knew you weren't happy for a long time because I knew you didn't know how to deal with your loss. As soon as you left, I knew it. I could smell it on you. But now you do. Now all you have to do is allow yourself to love again. Not family love, but spouse love."

I pondered his words in my head, and they rang through my head; bounced on the walls on my skull like an imaginary tennis match. I knew what he saying was right, but the biggest chance I had to possibly moving on was Tonks. And she was gone, without me knowing whether she was going to return. Regardless of that, I used the boots she had given me in the cowboy outfit I had made. Maybe I wasn't as good as letting go as I thought.

No other girl in the school was very special to me. Except perhaps the girls on the team and Hermione. Sure I had fun with them, but I never held no specific desire towards them. Not like the one that would lead to anything special.

"I'll keep looking. I'll at least promise you that much," I told him, making him nod.

"I know that's the most you can promise, and I don't blame you," Armand said. Then we all gathered in a horizontal line in front of Gwen's grave before we put our arms around each other's shoulders. Then Maman began singing a French tune she was very fond of. I closed my eyes and let the music flow through my ears as well as the tears streaming down my face. I didn't get as many tears as I was expecting, but I got an intense lost feeling and one of conflict. Which in its own way, was far worse. We remained quiet the rest of the visit here.

* * *

"You'll promise you'll visit again?" Angelique asked, giving me a hug. I returned the hug with a tight grip before looking her straight in the face.

"Whenever I get the chance to. Just stay safe out here. If anyone hurts you..."

"I already know what you'll do to them. Worse than any of the previous criminals you've dealt with. As we all know, you're good at making a mess and cleaning it up," Angelique said. I nodded before facing Armand.

"Thanks for the advice," I told him, holding a hand out. He shook it firmly before pulling me into a hug.

"You're always welcome. To think you would've been our son-in-law soon if that bastard hadn't killed her. I hope he's burning every second he's down there; feeling his flesh being melted off his body over and over and over again..."

"While being forced to be the devil's bitch at the same time. Forced to act like a little whore for him; desecrated and abused over and over and over again..." I growled, the anger in me rising swiftly.

"You two really need mental help," Angelique said, shaking her head.

"You disagree?" I questioned.

"Who said I disagreed? I just said you both needed mental help. I suppose I do too," Angelique said making me smile.

"The perfect family," Harry said, spreading his arms towards us. I turned towards him and ruffled his air. "Yeah, like my hair needs to be messed up more than it usually is."

"Get in the jet you little rascal," I said, pushing him towards the vehicle in question before registering the soldiers guarding the place. "Our motto! If no mercy is to be shown for us..."

"...no mercy is given to them!" the soldiers chanted, raising their rifles in the air with a prideful air. I smiled.

"So you still remember! Good! Practice those principles. Give the guilty no chance to do what they're doing again! Punish them accordingly! Make them pay!" I roared to them, making them cheer and fire their rifles in the air.

"You've got your own private army in various places around the world. You could likely take the world if you wanted to," Angelique said. I shrugged.

"Meh. I could buy if I wanted to instead of going through all that trouble. But I'll let them keep it," I said with a small smirk. Armand and Angelique smiled. I gave them one final hug before walking towards my jet. I climbed in, flew into the air, and went back towards Britain. Armand's advice rung through my head the entire trip. And so did the words that the Special Forces soldier told me my first year of training them. I was sure as hell going to find my happiness. To the end of the world if I had to.

* * *

A/N: That's that! I'm pushing more into my characters background as these stories progress. I'm not going to go into it too much more in this story, but just know that when I get to the 6th book, I'm really going to push it a little bit more. Actually, A LOT of things are going to be pushed in the 6th book. Believe me on that. I've got all of it planned out and I hope you'll all enjoy it.


	2. Chapter 2 - The Quidditch World Cup

"How'd you like France?" Hermione asked me.

"Fairly well. Though I had a specific destination in mind when we went there," I told them.

"Where?" Ron asked.

"To visit the president and his wife," I said idly making Ron shake his head.

"Who don't you know in the Muggle World?" he asked.

"When it comes to people I have personal attachments with, not that many. But when it comes to just names, more than anyone can count," I told him.

"So you know the president and his wife personally?" Hermione asked.

"Yes. I suppose they are the nearest things to my parents that I have left in this world," I said, making Hermione's and Ron's eyes widen.

"For you, that's quite the claim," Hermione said.

"And I mean it too. I knew them quite well a few years ago. I'd like to think I still do," I said, pointedly leaving Gwen out of the conversation.

"That's really amazing. The people you meet is pretty astounding," Hermione said.

"Trust me. There are a lot of powerful people that I've met I could introduce you too," I said.

"Enough of that," Ron said, cutting Hermione off before she delve more into the conversation. "You coming to the World Cup? If you are, dad could just as easily get you both tickets."

"Already bought tickets in the Top Box. They were not cheap. Thousand Galleons for both tickets. It was like being in an auction for those damnable things," I said, summoning said tickets to my hand.

"I would imagine. People become a vicious lot when it comes to Quidditch," Fred said, walking up to us along with George. I nodded respectfully at both twins.

"How are you both? Gred? Forge?" I asked.

"We are doing marvelously well, thank you for asking," Fred said in a proper tone of voice.

"Well, other than Mum crashing down on our future plans," George said, making me raise an eyebrow.

"If anything, that should be the opposite of what she should be doing. Mothers are supposed to build you up. Not crash you to the ground," I told him.

"If you had chosen a more serious occupation, then she would take you more seriously," Hermione said rationally.

"What's the occupation you have in mind?" I asked.

"A joke shop," Fred said confidently.

"Do you have any merchandise to show for it?" I asked curiously.

"Plenty. Ton-Tongue Toffees. These pieces of candies that make someone's tongue grow to a crazy size," George said, spreading his hands out to emphasize his point. "But they can be cured with a drop of a Shrinking Solution or a Shrinking Charm."

"You plan on making anything that isn't joke related?" I asked.

"Yes, but we can't necessarily reveal all of our plans, now can we?" Fred said with a grin.

"Fair enough. By all means, go for it," I said.

"You're actually encouraging us to do this? I thought you'd be more like Mum," Fred said.

"I would be if you had nothing to show for it. If you hadn't done anything to show that you really wanted to do this. But you've already got successful merchandise and you have plans to make more. That's commitment, and that definitely shows that you want to do this. In fact, I'd be willing to wire you money for a place of business and some Galleons to start off," I explained to them.

"Are you serious?" Fred and George questioned at the same time.

"Dead serious. I think you two could really make it. Not only make it, but become really successful," I said proudly.

"Maybe we should have you talk to Mum," George said.

"I'd be more than willing," I said with a firm nod.

"Are you still talking about that joke shop?" someone asked, walking up to us. They were definitely Weasleys, judging by the red hair, but only one of them I had met. And it was under strange circumstances. Not sure if he remembered me or not.

"I don't believe I've met you before," I said, walking up to Bill.

"We know all about you. You look very much like a Muggle, but one of the most badass ones I've ever seen. The dark clothing? The scars? You look a protagonist in an action film," he said.

"My life is crazier than any action movie. I can tell you that much right now," I said with a grin while holding out my hand. "Robert Morgan."

"Bill," the taller one said, shaking my hand firmly. I then moved to Charlie.

"Charlie," he said. For a few seconds, I just stared at him. On the inside, I was sizing him up. The instant he said his name, I remembered when Tonks said that she knew him. Whether she was around or not, I still felt a little competitive.

"Oh. Now I know. I've heard of you before," I said coolly as I shook his hand. I tightened my grip slightly before letting go.

"Really? From dragon taming, right?" Charlie asked, his voice somewhat hesitant.

"No. I can't necessarily name the first method here, but I can mention that Nymphadora mentioned you," I said, my expression cool.

"I dare you to call her that when she's around," Charlie said with a smirk.

"He has actually. Multiple times. He knew her back in first year," Harry butted in.

"As I recall it was her last year. I'm sure you can remember what happened that year that was particularly... interesting," I said with a trail. Then I saw his eyes widen by a slightly noticeable amount before he nodded.

"Ah, now I remember where I've seen you from. Yes, that was... interesting, to put it in your words," Charlie said.

"Alright, enough of that you two," Hermione said, who was walking up to us. I hadn't even noticed she left. "We're ready to eat."

"Let's go then," I said with a loud clap of my hands. We all walked out to the garden and sat down at the tables set up. I easily helped myself to food that was around the table cause for Mrs. Weasley, that was being hospitable rather than greedy apparently.

"You still haven't heard from Tonks?" Harry whispered towards me without moving his lips.

"Do we have to talk about this now?" I whispered back.

"We don't have to. We can save it until later," Harry said, going back to his food.

"But to answer your question, no I haven't," I muttered. Then I immediately went back to my food. I don't know what it was about her, but something about the pink haired individual left an imprint in my mind. I mean, I haven't met anyone like her, but tons of people were like that whether good or bad. My main conflict was whether I decided to wait for her.

When she kissed me at the end of first year, she told it was something to remember. The problem was, I couldn't tell whether she was asking me to wait or was that just a heat of the moment thing. But I felt if shes was talking about waiting, unless I met another girl who caught my attention, which was extremely unlikely, I suppose I could wait. But I couldn't deny that the wait was killing me. The rest of the night passed by somewhat relaxingly.

* * *

"Cedric," I said, firmly shaking hands with the guy. I wouldn't call him a man. Not just yet. Not until he could support himself.

"Robert, right?" he asked, making me nod in confirmation. "You're a damn good flier. Don't know much about you though."

"I like to keep it that way when it comes people I hardly know. Trust me. You never know when someone tries to use that information against you," I said before looking to the man who was behind him. "I would assume this is your father?"

"Yeah, it is," Cedric said. Mr. Weasley then drew himself up to gesture to the two Diggorys.

"This is Amos Diggory, everyone," Mr. Weasley said. "He works for the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. And I think you know his son, Cedric?"

"We do," I said with a nod before noting Fred and George's sour looks. They were probably still upset about the match last year. I wasn't too mad about it. Took a pack of Dementors to stop Harry from getting the Snitch before him. I was far from upset with him. Besides, it's not like they called them to the match.

"Long walk, Arthur?" Cedric's father asked.

"Not too bad," Mr. Weasley said. "We live just on the other side of the village there. You?"

"Had to get up at two, didn't we, Ced? I tell you, I'll be glad when he passes his Apparition test. Still... not complaining... Quidditch World Cup, wouldn't miss it for a sackful of Galleons - and the tickets cost about that. Mind you, looks like I got off easy..." Amos Diggory peered good-naturedly around at the three Weasley boys, Harry, Hermione, and Ginny as well as me. "All these yours, Arthur?"

"Oh no, only the redheads," Mr. Weasley said, pointing out his children before coming to us. "This is Hermione, friend of Ron's. Robert, who is actually Harry's guardian." Mr. Weasley was pointing to Harry as he said that before I looked at him with a glare.

"How did you know that?" I growled.

"Ron told me," Mr. Weasley said, making me glare at the red haired boy in question. He was pointedly looking away from me with red ears. I swear to goodness Ron...

"You're the guardian of Harry Potter?" Amos asked me. I looked at him with an even looking while my thoughts were going in full circle. Ah, fuck it.

"Yes. Yes I am. Is there a problem?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"No. No problem. Just interesting, is all," Amos said before smiling at his son. "But hey, Ced's talked about you and Mr. Potter plenty of times. Told us all about playing against you last year...I said to him, I said - Ced, that'll be something to tell your grandchildren, that will... You beat Harry Potter!"

My even look quickly changed into a scowl, and I was not the only one. Just about everyone except Mr. Weasley was scowling. Even Hermione looked pissed. Cedric looked embarrassed.

"Harry fell off his broom, Dad," he muttered. "I told you... it was an accident..."

"Yes, but you didn't fall off, did you?" Amos roared genially, slapping his son on his back. "Always modest, our Ced, always the gentleman...but the best man won, I'm sure Harry'd say the same, wouldn't you, eh? One falls off his broom, one stays on, you don't need to be a genius to tell which one's the better flier!" I definitely had enough of that and I stepped in front of Amos' face. Not too close to where I was going to come off as violent, but close enough to get into his personal space and get in his face.

"How about this. When your son has to fly through dozens of Dementors at a time, ask me if he stays on his broom. Until then, you shut your mouth about him falling off his broom like he couldn't have died out there," I said coldly. My hands were balled into fists and my stare was unrelenting. I was pissed. You don't dare talk about something the way it isn't. That was a one way ticket to pissing me off. The fact that it was Harry only made it ten times worse.

Amos took two steps back from my hostile attitude and he was able to maintain a steady gaze even though I could see his eyes were slightly wide and the corner of his mouth twitching. It looked like he was trying hard not to give off his real reaction. Whether more violent or fearful, I couldn't tell.

"Must be nearly time," Mr. Weasley interrupted quickly, pulling out his watch again. "Do you know whether we're waiting for any more, Amos?" He managed to tear his eyes away from my cold gaze to address Arthur.

"No, the Lovegoods have been there for a week already and the Fawcetts couldn't get tickets," Mr. Diggory said. "There aren't any more of us in this area, are there?"

"Not that I know of," Mr. Weasley said. "Yes, it's a minute off...We'd better get ready..." I then turned to Harry and Hermione.

"Just keep your hand on the Portkey, and you'll be fine. When you feel that pull of your navel, move your legs as if you're walking. That way you don't land in a heap," I told them. They nodded.

"Hey, how come you never told us this dad?" Ron asked the man in question.

"Well, it would've been slightly amusing to let you fall on the ground. It wouldn't have hurt much, but it would've been quite interesting to see," Mr. Weasley said with a sheepish tone, making me shake my head as I walked over to the Portkey. All of us grabbed on and within seconds, the Portkey that was in the shape of an old boot lifted us off and we landed safely into a patch of grass.

"What an interesting sensation," I said, cracking my neck as we walked towards the stand of which I could assume to be Portkeys.

"Very interesting. Morning Basil," Mr. Weasley said, picking up the boot and handing it to the kilted wizard, who threw it into a large box of used Portkeys beside him.

"Hello there, Arthur," Basil said wearily. "Not on duty, eh? It's all right for some... We've been here all night... You'd better get out of the way. We've got a big party coming in from the Black Forest at five fifteen. Hang on, I'll find your campsite... Weasley... Weasley..." He consulted his parchment list. "About a quarter of a mile's walk over there, first field you come to. Site manager's called Mr. Roberts. Diggory... second field... ask for Mr. Payne."

"Thanks, Basil," Mr. Weasley said, beckoning everyone to follow him. Walking at a semi-fast pace, but making sure to keep Harry close to me, I kept my eyes out for any signs of an ambush. This was a very unfamiliar area to me, and I didn't like that. No matter what, old habits would never die. I would make sure to be on guard.

"Are you really worried that we're going to get attacked in a group?" Harry asked.

"That never stopped killers before. If anything, it excites them more. More people to kill or more people to live to tell the tale. Maybe both. Publicized kills are what some killers live for. They thrive on the attention. They thrive on the chaos, worry, and confusion. Once you don't do that, they get angry. Make mistakes. And that's how you catch them," I said, recalling my times as the Vigilante. There were a lot of killers like that. More than you would think. And they were one of the most dangerous ones. Yet at the same time, they were also the most gullible.

At one point, we separated from the Diggorys and we went off to find our own campsite. We ended up outside of a cottage door and Mr. Weasley was the one to address the man outside. I made a note to keep my face to the side to avoid any complications.

"Morning!" Mr. Weasley said brightly.

"Morning," the Muggle said.

"Would you be Mr. Roberts?"

"Aye, I would," Mr. Roberts said. "And who're you?"

"Weasley - two tents, booked a couple of days ago?"

"Aye," Mr. Roberts said, consulting a list tacked to the door. "You've got a space up by the wood there. Just the one night?"

"That's it," Mr. Weasley said.

"You'll be paying now, then?" Mr. Roberts said.

"Ah - right - certainly -" Mr. Weasley said. He retreated a short distance from the cottage and beckoned me towards him.

"Not needed Arthur," I said, making a note not to make direct eye contact with the man before slapping a hundred pound bill in Mr. Roberts' hand. "Keep the change."

"But this is..."

"More than enough? I could care less about the change. This means nothing. Everyone!" I barked before gesturing towards the campsite.

"Do you need a map?" he asked us.

"We should be able to manage just find without it, thank you," I said politely, leading the group forward. On the way, I couldn't help but notice some of the most extravagant tents ever. Tents with chimneys and bellpulls and weather panes. One had even gone one step forward and had a tent built like a castle. I shook my head.

"My God. If I was still in England even if I hadn't met Harry, it would not have taken me long to figure out magic was real. Look at this shit!" I said, gesturing all around the place.

"I know right? It's unbelievable. You would think people would have a bit more common sense," Hermione said, looking around the campsite as if she was trying to make herself dizzy.

"It's always the same every year," Mr. Weasley said, smiling. "We can't resist showing off when we get together. Ah, here we are, look, this is us."

"Here" was an empty space, with a small sign hammered into the ground that read WEEZLY. I couldn't help but chuckle at the way it was spelled.

"Couldn't have a better spot!" Mr. Weasley said happily. "The field is just on the other side of the wood there. We're as close as we could be." He hoisted his backpack from his shoulders. "Right," he said excitedly, "No magic allowed, strictly speaking. Not when we're out in these numbers on Muggle land. We'll be putting these tents up by hand! Shouldn't be too difficult... Muggles do it all the time... Here, Robert, where do you reckon we should start?"

"I've got something better than a simple tent. Give me about ten minutes," I said, summoning my phone and punching in some orders to the nanites in my jacket. I finished putting in the coordinates, and right before our eyes, there was a loud whirring as the my nanites began to construct a place for us to live in using a minimum amount of space. I put my phone back up and had my hands in my pockets while looking around the camp.

I saw that people were dressed in the weirdest assortment of clothing. Men wearing women's clothing, unnatural color combos, unnecessary clothing and the like. Though at one point, I couldn't but notice a group of French girls walking past. I craned my head a little to get a better look at them, and they were dressed in bright blue robes. All of them were very beautiful. At one point they noticed me looking at them and, because I was wearing the cowboy outfit that I made last year, simply tipped my hat at them in a polite way. They smiled before giving me a nod back and continuing about their business.

"Getting to know the locals?" Harry asked, looking where I was staring at.

"More like getting a feel for the place. I expected nothing but Englishmen and women here at this spot," I said, still looking around.

"Well, you won't get that. If they have anything to say about it, people from all over are going to be here for the Cup. Speaking of which, who are you voting for in the tournament?" Ron asked me.

"Ireland. I've met both cultures, and I've found most Irishmen to be more pleasant that Bulgarians," I said evenly.

"Wait, you're rooting for them based on their attitude? What about the stats? What about the players?" Ron asked, sounding almost offended at my lack of delving into the sport.

"That's because I have more important things to do than sit around watching Quidditch tournaments. I've got a company to run. Inventions to make. Soldiers to train. Not to mention a son to take care of," I told him before giving him a pointed look while raising my cowboy hat with a knowing look on my face. "Do you?" Ron was about to open his mouth to say something, but decided against it and simply turned away.

Once my nanites finished with our living space, I customized it to the way my house looked like and had us walk in. I got people's eyes to widen from the look of the place, and I grinned.

"Like it? I designed it after my place. Other than it being artificially made by robots, it's still the same place. I'm sure you'll find it comfortable," I said, gesturing all around the place.

"It's beautiful," Hermione said, looking around the hall. I gave a small smile before speaking.

"My mom designed the place. I still remember as a child, I remember saying this when we moved into the house: 'Mommy, mommy, why are we in an empty house? Are we cave people now?'" I recited, making the whole group laugh.

"She laughed at my sentence and responded with, 'No RJ,' cause that's what she called me when I was a child. 'This is our new home. It just looks empty cause we don't have stuff in it yet.' Mind you, I was a smart child, but I still had that childlike innocence. And I couldn't really grasp the thought of living in a new house to call home. But I got used to it. And I rather enjoyed it too," I said, crossing my arms with my smile still plastered on my face. "I wish I could go back to those days."

"I wonder what you would've been like if you didn't have so much... pain," Harry asked, looking for the right word to describe what was wrong with me.

"Probably a lot less violent and skillful. But probably more brilliant and happier. And I wouldn't be seeing the world the way I do now. Where everyone's cruel and evil until they prove otherwise," I said before shaking my head. "Ah, that's enough of that. Let's see the kitchen. I'm hungry."

"Ah, ah, ah! Anti-Muggle security! When real Muggles camp, they cook on fires outdoors. I've seen them at it!" Mr. Weasley said, making me face palm.

"Yeah, before I invented these things. They're basically homes on the go now. You forget this isn't a magical tent. It's Muggle made. So they won't think anything of it," I told him. Mr. Weasley looked around the whole place in a distracted type of way before looking back at me.

"Really? I thought it was some other wizarding contraption that I had never seen before. I never though Muggles could make anything like this," Mr. Weasley said, looking like he was close to an orgasm after realizing that this was Muggle made.

"You forget who makes this stuff," I said, pointing at myself. "Anyway, to the kitchen we go! None of you lift a finger! This is all me."

"You sure?" Mr. Weasley asked.

"Yes, I'm sure. I know my way around a kitchen. A brotha has to survive on more than fast food and TV dinners," I said as I was walking towards the kitchen. Because I tended to put nanites on EVERYTHING I own, and I mean EVERYTHING, I was able to summon food into the kitchen and just go crazy.

I made my favorite spread when I was a child; fried chicken, herb potatoes, and seasoned string beans. I was just going down memory lane so much lately, but I felt like it was a very healthy thing. I was coming into better terms with myself. And this could only be good for me, I'd say.

I spread out a plate of food onto every spot at the table. I didn't bother with the apron and all that extra shit cause my nanites cleaned my stuff for me. So it really wasn't required.

"Eat up," I said, placing cups and putting 2 two liter sodas in the center of the table. One peach soda, the other Mountain Dew. Cause lets face it. Who doesn't love Mountain Dew?

"You know Bill, Charlie, and Percy are going to be here soon?" Hermione reminded me.

"They're old enough to follow directions and use their arms. I'm not going to wait on them," I said as I got a tub of ice in the center as well. "Put the ice in your cups so your stuff can cool faster."

"This is really nice. Though I can't say I've ever had homemade fried chicken before," Hermione said, making my eyes widen. I looked dead at her and she looked slightly perturbed by my look before I shook my head.

"That is one of the worst things I have ever heard in my life. You better sink them teeth into that chicken right now. You not only offend me, but you have offended your taste buds as well," I said in a haughty tone of voice.

"Is it that serious?" Hermione asked me.

"Yes!" me and Harry exclaimed at the same time. Hermione looked at Harry with a puzzled expression. He gestured to the chicken, which was his way of saying 'taste it and find out.' Not even focusing on my own food, I eagerly watched Hermione's look as she took a bite into the chicken. Her eyes widened. Then she followed up with another bite. And another one. And another one. I smiled.

"Good right?" I asked her.

"Now I can see what you mean. It's not like the type of fried chicken I've ever had at the castle. I don't know what it is, but something about it being homemade..."

"That makes it substantially better. I know it. It's why I'm so good at it. Now everyone, if you don't eat at least most of this stuff, I'll force feed what I feel is enough down your throat. And I mean that," I said in a serious tone.

"Looks like we arrived at the wrong time," Charlie said, walking in with Bill and Percy.

"No, you arrived in time. Sit down. And what I just said goes for all of you too. Mrs. Weasley may be a cook and nice, but I'm minus the nice part when it comes to cooking. That's an insult to me and my skills, which I don't take kindly. You better take what you can handle," I warned them. They seemed to look at their plates like they were having second thoughts. I smirked. Whether we were rich or not, my mom taught me not to waste. They'd learn the same lesson if I had anything to say about it.

* * *

"Er - is it my eyes, or has everything gone green?" Ron said.

"It's not just you. We've walked smack dab into the middle of the Ireland supporters' part of the camp," I said, looking all around at the place. I was surrounded by green everything. It was like you stuck me into the center of a batch of green Jell-O.

"Harry! Ron! Hermione! Robert!" I heard Seamus yell at us. I looked back at him and waved along with the others. Seamus was also accompanied by his mother, who had the same sandy hair he did.

"Seamus. Mrs. Finnegan," I said politely, nodding in both of their directions.

"Hello. Seamus has mentioned you. Rather impressive that you're the first Muggle to go the Hogwarts," Mrs. Finnegan said.

"I'm also the first Muggle to discover Hogwarts without being turned away by the charms. Plus I didn't get my memory wiped when I discovered magic. No big deal," I said with a smile. She grinned as well.

"Well, you're certainly a lot less sullen than Seamus mentioned. Who are rooting for in the game?" she asked me.

"Doesn't matter too much to me cause I don't follow Quidditch as much as I should, but I would prefer Ireland. I found them to be a lot more pleasant than Bulgarians," I told her.

"I like you even more now," Seamus said.

"So do I," Mrs. Finnegan said. I grinned. If she wasn't married, there was so much playful flirting that I could do. But I had more respect for her husband than that, so I wasn't going to do that. "Also, what's with the outfit?" I held my hands out while looking down at my cowboy uniform.

"What's wrong with what I'm wearing?" I asked, looking down at my cowboy uniform. "I've got a version of this where I'm shirtless. Trust me, if I wore that, you'd have to be more worried. Cause I look like a cowboy stripper in that uniform."

"A stripper is basically someone who dances for someone for money while stripping their clothing off one by one," Harry explained at their blank looks. "In the Muggle world, males do it and females do it."

"That sounds positively medieval," Mrs. Finnegan said.

"It is. But it's definitely a good time, I can tell you that much. If the female or the male feels too uncomfortable by what their customer is doing, they have guards to protect the persons involved. So there are some limits as to what happens," Harry explained to them.

"Yes. Well, in any other case, I get what you were saying about looking like a cowboy stripper. And I can only imagine by the way you're built, it would be quite a sight to see," Mrs. Finnegan said before turning a little red. "That came out-"

"Completely wrong?" I finished for her. "It's ok. You're not the first. I won't mention it to your husband. I'd imagine you forgot you were married for a moment. Things get away from people. It's completely normal."

"You sound so... rational," Mrs. Finnegan said.

"Because I am. Anyway, I think we ought to move on from here. Before you get another slip of the tongue again," I told her.

"That might be best. We'll see you," Mrs. Finnegan said, grabbing her son's arm and whisking him away.

"See you at school Seamus!" I exclaimed while waving my hand. He didn't even turn around, probably embarrassed about what just happened. I shook my head before turning back to the other three.

"Seriously..." Harry said, putting his hand on his face and shaking his head.

"I swear, I didn't even mean for that to happen," I said, raising my hands in surrender.

"Why is it women are naturally attracted to you?" Harry asked.

"I don't know. Maybe it's when they don't know the real me that I'm completely charming. I'm sure they'd be less turned on if they found out I've chopped of the testicles of rapists, ground them up into a liquid before having them drinking it. Harry, Hermione's, and Ron's eyes widened when I said this.

"What. The. Fuck?" Harry asked, leaning his head back in shock.

"Are you really surprised?" I asked.

"Kinda. I mean, I knew you were violent, but Jesus Christ. That's horrifying to think about," Harry said.

"They deserved it," I told him simply as we continued walking.

"Do you really believe that?" Hermione asked this.

"How about this. You look into the eyes of a woman after she's been raped and ask her does she think he deserved it. Eyes so wide and horrified, but are locked with a steely anger after that statement has been said. It's a look you don't know until you've seen it. Trust me, you don't want to," I told them with a hard tone. It wasn't necessarily directed at them, but this is one of those situations that needs a firm hand doing the actions and solid nerve. "But anyway, let's just continue beyond that depressing thought."

"I wonder what the Bulgarians have got dangling all over their tents?" Hermione asked quickly as a change of subject.

"Let's go and have a look," Harry said, pointing to a large patch of tents upfield, where the Bulgarian flag - white, green, and red - was fluttering in the breeze.

The tents here had not been bedecked with plant life, but each and every one of them had the same poster attached to it, a poster of a very surly face with heavy black eyebrows. The picture was, of course, moving, but all it did was blink and scowl.

"Krum," Ron said quietly.

"What?" Hermione asked.

"Krum!" Ron said. "Viktor Krum, the Bulgarian Seeker!"

"He looks really grumpy," Hermione said, looking around at the many Krums blinking and scowling at them.

"'Really grumpy'?" Ron raised his eyes to the heavens. "Who cares what he looks like? He's unbelievable. He's really young too. Only just eighteen or something. He's a genius, you wait until tonight, you'll see."

"Bulgarians tend to be sullen a lot of the time. That's why I prefer Irishmen. A lot more pleasant lot," I said offhandedly.

We walked back through the campsites, and we noticed a lot of familiar faces. Oliver Wood, who was the old captain of the Quidditch team, was there with his parents.

"How are ya Wood?" I asked, walking up to him and shaking his hand.

"Good. I'd like to meet my parents. Steven and Miranda Wood," Wood said, gesturing to his parents. I shook their hands firmly as Harry and the others were walking up to them. "And this is Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger, and Harry Potter." Before they could give a full concrete reaction to seeing Harry, he spoke up.

"I'd prefer if you don't freak out over my scar. Personally, it's very tiresome," he said in an even tone.

"Of course. We heard from Wood that you were the first first year Seeker on the team in over a century. You must be really good," Steven said.

"Best damn Seeker on the team. And I mean that," I said with a nod.

"Hey, I'm the only Seeker on the team!" Harry exclaimed with humor in his tone. I grinned slyly.

"So, to be fair, that also makes you the worst," I said, making Harry slap me on my arm while the rest of us roared with laughter.

"Are you two always like this?" Miranda asked.

"Yes. Yes we are," me and Harry said at the same time.

"But there's no denying that we know how to get serious when we need to," I told them.

"That's good. Well, it was nice meeting you all, but we really should get back to our campsite. We want to get ready for the game," Steven said.

"That's fine. Nice to meet you all as well," I said.

"Wait, before I go..." Wood said excitedly as a wide grin spread onto his face. "I wanted to tell you that I've been signed onto the Puddlemere United team."

"That's excellent news. You're a damn good Keeper. Trust me, they won't regret that decision," I told him with a smile.

"Thank you. I certainly hope not. You're an amazing Chaser yourself. Taking the Quaffle from you is not easy. I don't think it's been done yet," Wood said with a smile of his own.

"And it's going to continue to stay that way," I said with a smirk. "Good luck to you."

"You as well. See you all!" Wood said, walking away while waving.

"See ya Wood!" we all said at the same time.

"It was nice to see Wood again, don't you think?" Hermione said.

"Yeah, it was. I'm not going to miss training in storms though," Harry said.

"You said it," I said as we continued forward.

On the way, we continued back towards the campsite, during which we ran into a few more familiar faces from school. Ernie Macmillan and Cho Chang were among the bunch. Harry gave her a small wink in her direction, and she turned away with a small blush. I shook my head.

"And you talk about me," I said.

"Hey, at least I don't charm every woman within a half a mile radius. That thing with Seamus' mother only reinforces it," Harry told me with a knowing look.

"I told you that last one wasn't even intentional!" I exclaimed before pinching the bridge of my nose. "Look, just drop it."

"Alright, Casanova. I'll let it die," Harry said with a cheeky grin.

"You little bastard," I said with a smirk before grabbing him by the neck and rubbing my knuckles into his head a little. Harry laughed before slipping himself out of my grip.

"Alright, alright. I'm done," he said. I nodded in satisfaction.

"Good," I said.

When we arrived back to the camp, we saw one of the most noticeable people out of the entire bunch. He was wearing long Quidditch robes in thick horizontal stripes of bright yellow and black. An enormous picture of a wasp was splashed across his chest. He had the look of a powerfully built man gone slightly to seed with the robes stretching tightly across a large belly. His nose was squashed, but his round blue eyes, short blond hair, and rosy complexion made him look like a very overgrown schoolboy.

"Who are you?" I couldn't resist asking as soon as I walked into the tent. The man turned to face me before grinning widely at the sight of me.

"Ah, you must be the Muggle student everyone's been talking about in the papers. It's a pleasure to meet you at last. Ludo Bagman," he said jovially, holding out his hand and grinning widely.

"Robert Morgan," I said, shaking his hand.

"I know who you are. A lot of people are. I tell you this, I've never heard of anyone stirring up so many issues in the Ministry just for existing except perhaps Dark Lords. The Ministry's in a divide it is. There are people in support of you. Happy about the diversity their showing as to who they let go to the school. But then we got the ones who don't like the idea. That Muggles should stay in their place and whatnot," Bagman explained.

My mouth went into a thin line. So there was a lot more going on than I thought. I'm not surprised some of these 'Pure-Bloods' were not happy about me being at Hogwarts. They already hate Muggle-borns for going there, and now a pure _Muggle_ is going there? Yeah, that's gonna start problems.

"Personally, I'm not very surprised. But I'm going there whether they like it or not. And nothing is going to change that," I said with a firm tone.

"There's that steely backbone I've also heard about. I like it," Bagman said with a wide grin before cheerfully going back to Mr. Weasley. "Couldn't do me a brew, I suppose? I'm keeping an eye out for Barty Crouch. My Bulgarian opposite number's making difficulties, and I can't understand a word he's saying. Barty'll be able to sort it out. He speaks about a hundred and fifty languages."

"Mr. Crouch?" Percy said, suddenly abandoning his look of poker-stiff disapproval and positively writhing with excitement. "He speaks over two hundred! Mermish and Gobbledygook and Troll..."

"Anyone can speak Troll," Fred said dismissively. "All you have to do is point and grunt."

Percy threw Fred an extremely nasty look and stoked the fire vigorously to bring the kettle back to the boil. I couldn't help but grin at Percy's look. Whoever this Mr. Crouch was, Percy definitely looked up to him with the utmost adoration. I could kind of understand that. The man could speak over two hundred languages. That's quite a feat. I knew every language that wasn't magical related. Crouch seemed to know that and more. In that area, he had me beat by a landslide.

"Any news of Bertha Jorkins yet, Ludo?" Mr. Weasley asked as Bagman settled himself down on the grass beside them all. Now this I was curious about. There was word about a Bertha going missing in Albania. From what I remembered, Dumbledore said that's where Voldemort was rumored to be hidden last.

"I heard about that. She was rumored to have gone missing in Albania, correct?" I asked.

"Yeah, you're right. We haven't heard a single word about her. But I'm sure she'll turn up. Poor old Bertha... memory like a leaky cauldron and no sense of direction. Lost, you take my word for it. She'll wander back into the office sometime in October, thinking it's still July," Bagman said.

"I've heard Albania is where Voldemort was rumored to be hiding," I said offhandedly, making several people in the room flinch.

"That seems ridiculous to think that You-Know-Who would go after her. There's nothing important that old Bertha could really offer him that would really be of use. She works with me in the Department of Magical Games and Sports. What would a Dark Lord do with someone like that as far as anything useful?" Bagman asked.

"You make a good point there. Still, something about her disappearance rubs me the wrong way. It's... too strange," I said, putting fingers under my chin in thought.

"You don't know old Bertha like I do. But you don't have to worry. She'll wander back in sooner or later," Bagman said. Though I was far from reassured.

Then with a semi-loud crack, someone Apparated outside of our tent, and I didn't need anyone to tell me that this was Barty Crouch. And why Percy looked up to him.

Crouch was a stiff, upright, elderly man, dressed in an impeccably crisp suit and tie. The parting in his short gray hair was almost unnaturally straight, and his narrow toothbrush mustache looked as though he trimmed it using a slide rule. His shoes were very highly polished. Mr. Crouch had complied with the rule about Muggle dressing so thoroughly that he could have passed for a bank manager. If he didn't Apparate, I probably would've made him for a Muggle myself.

"Pull up a bit of grass, Barry," Ludo said brightly, patting the ground beside him.

"No thank you, Ludo," Crouch said with impatience in his voice. "I've been looking for you everywhere. The Bulgarians are insisting we add another twelve seats to the Top Box."

"Oh, is that what they're after?" Bagman said. I thought the chap was asking to borrow a pair of tweezers. Bit of a strong accent."

"Mr. Crouch!" Percy said breathlessly, sunk into a kind of half bow that made him look like a hunchback. "Would you like a cup of tea?"

"Oh," Mr. Crouch said, looking over at Percy in mild surprise. "Yes - thank you, Weatherby."

Fred and George choked into their own cups. Percy, very pink around the ears, busied himself with the kettle. Me, Ron, and Harry choked on our laughs at that. It was honestly one of the funniest replacements for his last name I've heard. It isn't saying much, but still.

"Oh and I've been wanting a word with you too, Arthur," Mr. Crouch said, his sharp eyes falling upon Mr. Weasley. "Ali Bashir's on the warpath. He wants a word with you about your embargo on flying carpets." Mr. Weasley sighed deeply.

"I sent him an owl about that just last week. If I've told him once, I've told him a hundred times: Carpets are defined as a Muggle Artifact by the Registry of Proscribed Charmable Objects, but will he listen?"

"I doubt it," Mr. Crouch said, accepting a cup from Percy. "He's desperate to export here."

"Well, they'll never replace brooms in Britain, will they?" Bagman said.

"Ali thinks there's a niche in the market for a family vehicle," Mr. Crouch said. "I remember my grandfather had an Axminster that could seat twelve - but that was before carpets were banned, of course."

He spoke as though he wanted to leave nobody in any doubt that all of his ancestors had abided strictly by the law. And that just made me all the more suspicious. Most people who have squeaky clean records often have a very dirty secret lying underneath.

"So, been keeping busy, Barty?" Bagman said breezily.

"Fairly," Mr. Crouch said dryly. "Organizing Portkeys across five continents is no mean feat, Ludo."

"I expect you'll both be glad when this is over?" Mr. Weasley said, making Bagman look at him with a shocked expression.

"Glad! Don't know when I've had more fun... Still, it's not as though we haven't got anything to took forward to, eh, Barty? Eh? Plenty left to organize, eh?" he said, causing Crouch to raise his eyebrows at Bagman.

"We agreed not to make the announcement until all the details -"

"Oh details!" Bagman interrupted, waving the word away like a cloud of midges. "They've signed, haven't they? They've agreed, haven't they? I bet you anything these kids'll know soon enough anyway. I mean, it's happening at Hogwarts -"

"What is?" I asked immediately in one of my voices that was one for getting attention. Loud and demanding, but completely neutral.

"Don't worry. You all will know soon enough at Hogwarts," Bagman said jovially, waving a dismissive hand. I frowned. I didn't like being kept in of the dark.

"Ludo, we need to meet the Bulgarians, you know," Mr. Crouch said sharply, cutting Bagman's remarks short. It was obvious he wanted to stop Bagman before he actually said anything. "Thank you for the tea, Weatherby."

He pushed his undrunk tea back at Percy and waited for Ludo to rise; Bagman struggled to his feet, swigging down the last of his tea, the gold in his pockets chinking merrily.

"See you all later!" he said. "You'll be up in the Top Box with me - I'm commentating!" He waved, Barty Crouch nodded curtly, and both of them Disapparated.

"What's happening at Hogwarts, Dad?" Fred asked at once. "What were they talking about?"

"You'll find out soon enough," Mr. Weasley said, smiling.

"It's classified information, until such time as the Ministry decides to release it," Percy said stiffly. "Mr. Crouch was quite right not to disclose it."

"Oh shut up Weatherby," Fred said, causing me to let out a snort of laughter.

* * *

"Wow, look at these!" Harry said, hurrying over to a cart piled high with what looked like brass binoculars, except that they were covered with all sorts of weird knobs and dials. I picked one up and examined them.

"Ooh. I'd definitely like one of these. What are they?" I asked.

"Omnioculars," the saleswizard said eagerly. "You can replay action... slow everything down... and they flash up a play-by-play breakdown if you need it. Bargain - ten Galleons each." I nodded with an impressed look on my face. That was a bargain.

"Wish I hadn't bought this now," Ron said, gesturing at his dancing shamrock hat and gazing longingly at the Omnioculars.

"Four pairs," I said, putting down forty Galleons on the table.

"No - don't bother," Ron said, going red. He was always touchy about the fact that just about all of us had more money than he did, but I was having none of it.

"Do yourself a favor Ron, and take the damn gift," I said, forcing the Omnioculars in his hand.

"Oooh, thank you very much Robert," Hermione said gratefully, taking the Omnioculars. "And I'll get us some programs, look -"

Then we went back to the tents. Bill, Charlie, and Ginny were all sporting green rosettes too, and Mr. Weasley was carrying an Irish flag. Fred and George had no souvenirs as they had given Bagman all their gold.

And then a deep, booming gong sounded somewhere beyond the woods, and at once, green and red lanterns blazed into life in the trees, lighting a path to the field. I was restless myself; there was plenty of hype around this match enough to get anyone excited.

"It's time! Mr. Weasley said, looking as excited as any of us. "Come on, let's go!"

We all hurried into the wood, following the lantern-lit trail. We could hear the sounds of thousands of people moving around us, shouts and laughter, snatches of singing. The atmosphere of feverish excitement was highly infectious, it was almost impossible to not get the same contagious bout of excitement that everyone was feeling.

"Seats a hundred thousand," Mr. Weasley said, pointing at the stadium. "Ministry task force of five hundred have been working on it all year. Muggle Repelling Charms on every inch of it. Every time Muggles have got anywhere near here all year, they've suddenly remembered urgent appointments and had to dash away again... All except for you of course." I smirked as Mr. Weasley was addressing me. I'm pretty sure I was the only Muggle in existence not affected by this charm.

"Prime seats!" the Ministry witch said at the entrance when she checked our tickets. "Top Box! Straight upstairs, Arthur, and as high as you can go."

We hurried up to the top of the steps and we reached the Top Box with plenty of seats open as not everyone had arrived yet. I took a seat in between Harry and Ron and was looking out onto the smooth field. If you compared our Quidditch field to this, it was like we were playing over a maze of grass. The field was so smooth and well kept, it was amazing. It was safe to say that people had definitely been working their asses off getting this field together.

"Dobby?" Harry suddenly asked in an incredulous voice. I immediately looked where he was looking and I noticed that there was indeed a house elf there, but it wasn't Dobby.

"Did sir just call me Dobby?" the elf squeaked curiously from between its fingers. Its voice was higher even than Dobby's had been. A teeny, quivering squeak of a voice, which suggested that this one might be female. Ron and Hermione spun around in their seats to look. Though they had heard a lot about Dobby from Harry, they had never actually met him. Even Mr. Weasley looked around in interest.

"Sorry," Harry told the elf, "I just thought you were someone I knew."

"But I knows Dobby too, sir!" the elf squeaked. She was shielding her face, as though blinded by light, though the Top Box was not brightly lit. "My name is Winky, sir - and you, sir -" Her dark brown eyes widened to the size of side plates as they rested upon Harry's scar. "You is surely Harry Potter!"

"Yeah, I am," Harry said.

"But Dobby talks of you all the time, sir!" she said, lowering her hands very slightly and looking awestruck.

"How is he?" Harry said. "How's freedom suiting him?"

"Ah, sir," Winky said, shaking her head, "Ah sir, meaning no disrespect, sir, but I is not sure you did Dobby a favor, sir, when you is setting him free."

"What's wrong? Is he alright?" I asked, my tone sounding concerned. Regardless of the way the elf went about it, he really cared for Harry by doing the things he did during second year. And I couldn't fault him for that.

"Freedom is going to Dobby's head, sir, " Winky said sadly. "Ideas above his station, sir. Can't get another position, sir."

"Why not?" Harry asked.

Winky lowered her voice by a half-octave and whispered, "He is wanting paying for his work, sir."

"Well, that's fair. He deserves to be paid," I said in a neutral voice. What was so bad about someone wanting to be paid for their efforts? But Winky looked quite horrified at the idea and closed her fingers slightly so that her face was half-hidden again.

"House-elves is not paid, sir!" she said in a muffled squeak. "No, no, no. I says to Dobby, I says, go find yourself a nice family and settle down, Dobby. He is getting up to all sorts of high jinks, sir, what is unbecoming to a house-elf. You goes racketing around like this, Dobby, I says, and next thing I hear you's up in front of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, like some common goblin."

"Well, it's about time he had a bit of fun," Harry said evenly.

"House-elves is not supposed to have fun, Harry Potter," Winky said firmly, from behind her hands. "House-elves does what they is told. I is not liking heights at all, Harry Potter -" she glanced toward the edge of the box and gulped - "but my master sends me to the Top Box and I comes, sir."

"That's known as slavery. It's bullshit. It's a shame that house elves are literally bound by their magic to work," I said in a hard tone with my jaw clenched. Winky gave the edge of the box another frightened look and hid her eyes completely again.

"So that's a house-elf?" Ron muttered. "Weird things, aren't they?"

"Dobby was weirder," Harry said fervently. I nodded in agreement. Then again, most people find it weird that a house elf wants to be paid. Weird was a matter of opinion more than it was fact.

The box filled gradually around them over the next half hour. Mr. Weasley kept shaking hands with people who were obviously very important wizards. Percy jumped to his feet so often that he looked as though he were trying to sit on a hedgehog. When Cornelius Fudge, the Minister of Magic himself arrived, Percy bowed so low that his glasses fell off and shattered. Highly embarrassed, he repaired them with his wand and thereafter remained in his seat, throwing jealous looks at Harry, whom Cornelius Fudge had greeted like an old friend. Though I couldn't stop myself from eyeing the Minister coldly. After that Dementor disaster last year, my chances of forgiving the man are very slim.

"Harry Potter, you know," he told the Bulgarian minister loudly, who was wearing splendid robes of black velvet trimmed with gold and didn't seem to understand a word of English. "Harry Potter... oh come on now, you know who he is... the boy who survived You-Know-Who... you do know who he is -"

The Bulgarian wizard suddenly spotted Harry's scar and started gabbling loudly and excitedly, pointing at it. I just caught him exclaiming excitedly, "Harry Potter! Harry Potter!"

"Knew we'd get there in the end," Fudge said wearily to Harry. "I'm no great shakes at languages; I need Barty Crouch for this sort of thing. Ah, I see his house-elf's saving him a seat... Good job too, these Bulgarian blighters have been trying to cadge all the best places... ah, and here's Lucius!" The instant I heard the man's name, I turned around to face him.

"Ah, Fudge," Lucius said, holding out his hand as he reached the Minister of Magic. "How are you? I don't think you've met my wife, Narcissa? Or our son, Draco?"

"How do you do, how do you do?" Fudge said, smiling and bowing to Mrs. Malfoy. "And allow me to introduce you to Mr. Oblansk - Obalonsk -"

"O-bla-non-sk," I said, pronouncing the word for him. "Bulgarian is an iffy language as far as pronunciation." Fudge gave me a side look, before turning back to Malfoy.

"Yes, well... He's the Bulgarian Minister of Magic, and he can't understand a word I'm saying anyway, so never mind. And let's see who else - you know Arthur Weasley, I daresay?" Fudge said. The two men then began sizing each other up. I heard from Fred and George that they ended up fighting in Flourish and Blotts when I asked what happened when I was fighting that Daywalker. That's quite a meeting to leave off of.

"Good lord, Arthur," he said softly. "What did you have to sell to get seats in the Top Box? Surely your house wouldn't have fetched this much?"

Fudge, who wasn't listening, said, "Lucius has just given a very generous contribution to St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries, Arthur. He's here as my guest." Sometimes, I swear this man heard only what he wanted to hear.

"How - how nice," Mr. Weasley said with a very strained smile.

Lucius' eyes had moved to Hermione, who instead of looking away or looking at him hesitantly, stared back at him with no fear or hesitancy at all. There was defiance in every feature of her face and I daresay I could even see resentment in her expression. His lip curled at the sight of her. I decided to move on past him and look at his wife, who I had met on an occasion before. I basically threatened her and her family, and I'm sure that was sure to bring some bad memories.

Upon looking at me, I could see the resentment in her eyes, but it couldn't compare to the stone cold look of cruelty that I was a master at projecting. I even heard from some people that when I do that stare, it's so cold, it's almost like like being in the presence of death itself. And I was a master of that as well. Most people just didn't know it yet.

"Slimy gits," Ron muttered as all of us sat down.

"Couldn't agree more," I said, removing my contemptuous gaze off the Malfoys and decided to focus on something far better. The game that was starting shortly.

"Everyone ready?" Ludo Bagman said, rushing into the top Box. "Minister - ready to go?"

"Ready when you are, Ludo," Fudge said comfortably.

Ludo whipped out his wand, directed it at his own throat, and said "Sonorus!" and then spoke over the roar of sound that was now filling the packed stadium; his voice echoed over them, booming into every corner of the stands.

"Ladies and gentlemen... welcome! Welcome to the final of the four hundred and twenty-second Quidditch World Cup!" Bagman roared.

The spectators screamed and clapped. Thousands of flags waved, adding their discordant national anthems to the racket. The huge blackboard opposite them was wiped clear of its last message (Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans - A Risk With Every Mouthful!) and now showed BULGARIA: 0, IRELAND: 0.

"And now, without further ado, allow me to introduce... the Bulgarian National Team Mascots!" The right-hand side of the stands, which was a solid block of scarlet, roared its approval.

"I wonder what they've brought," Mr. Weasley said, leaning forward in his seat. "Aaah!" He suddenly whipped off his glasses and polished them hurriedly on his robes. "Veela!" I immediately looked to Harry.

"Prepare yourself," I told him.

"Why?" he asked.

"You'll see," I said evenly as Veela began flooding the stadium.

Quite simply, Veela were stunningly beautiful women. Beyond what humans could even try to look like. They had a type of pull about them; something about them that made you have to look at them. Make an impression. But I didn't have to make an impression for anyone, so I just sat in my seat and watched the show. Harry's eyes widened a bit at the sight of the Veela, but he didn't even make to get up from his seat. He just sat there and watched them with one of the most focused expressions I've ever seen.

"You were right when I said 'prepare myself,'" Harry said in an offhanded tone.

"Told ya," I said without glancing in his direction.

"And now," Ludo Bagman roared, "kindly put your wands in the air... for the Irish National Team Mascots!"

Next moment, what seemed to be a great green-and-gold comet came zooming into the stadium. It did one circuit of the stadium, then split into two smaller comets, each hurtling toward the goal posts. A rainbow arced suddenly across the field, connecting the two balls of light. The crowd oooohed and aaaaahed, as though at a fireworks display. Now the rainbow faded and the balls of light reunited and merged; they had formed a great shimmering shamrock, which rose up into the sky and began to soar over the stands. Something like golden rain seemed to be falling from it -

"Excellent!" Ron yelled as the shamrock soared over them, and heavy gold coins rained from it, bouncing off their heads and seats. Turns out the shamrock was not magic, but thousands of tiny leprechauns with lanterns. I smiled. This was definitely a hell of a performance.

"There you go!" Ron yelled happily, stuffing a fistful of gold coins into my hand. "Now we're even!" I shook my head at Ron's behavior, but I smirked nonetheless. Whether you liked him or hated him, you had to admit he was one to pay back his debts. Even though the Omnioculars were a gift.

"And now, ladies and gentlemen, kindly welcome - the Bulgarian National Quidditch Team! I give you - Dimitrov!"

A scarlet-clad figure on a broomstick, moving so fast it was blurred, shot out onto the field from an entrance far below, to wild applause from the Bulgarian supporters. I couldn't even make his features distinct cause he was moving so fast. But I did catch him though.

"Ivanova!"

A second scarlet-robed player zoomed out.

"Zograf! Levski! Vulchanov! Volkov! Aaaaaaand - Krum!"

"That's him, that's him!" Ron yelled, following Krum with his Omnioculars.

For a closer look at this Quidditch player that Ron was raving about, I used my Omnioculars and slowed him down so I could examine his features better. Krum was thin, dark, and sallow-skinned, with a large curved nose and thick black eyebrows. He looked like an overgrown bird of prey, and the pictures he were in didn't really portray that as accurately as I was seeing him now.

"And now, please greet - the Irish National Quidditch Team!" Bagman yelled. "Presenting - Connolly! Ryan! Troy! Mullet! Moran! Quigley! Aaaaaand - Lynch!"

Seven green blurs swept onto the field, and I slowed things down so that I could get a good look at each of the players. They all seemed to have a sophisticated build; in shape upper body wise, but not so much lower. Except for the Seeker, who was skinnier, but still had a little bit of muscle to him. He needed to be light and quick, so he looked like he intentionally toned down on his weight so he could be quicker. The Bulgarian players were of a similar build.

"And here, all the way from Egypt, our referee, acclaimed Chairwizard of the International Association of Quidditch, Hassan Mostafa!"

A small and skinny wizard, completely bald but with a mustache to rival the burliest of bikers, wearing robes of pure gold to match the stadium, strode out onto the field. A silver whistle was protruding from under the mustache, and he was carrying a large wooden crate under one arm, his broomstick under the other. Mostafa mounted his broomstick and kicked the crate open - four balls burst into the air: the scarlet Quaffle, the two black Bludgers, and the minuscule, winged Golden Snitch. With a sharp blast on his whistle, Mostafa shot into the air after the balls.

"Theeeeeeeey're OFF! Bagman screamed. "And it's Mullet! Troy! Moran! Dimitrov! Back to Mullet! Troy! Levski! Moran!"

It was an unbelievable game. This was a Quidditch game like I had never seen it. No game was this fast paced. Even ours. But if we moved these brooms at full speed, we'd moving exactly this. A pure blur of the colors we were wearing, which was Gryffindor red and gold.

The three Irish Chasers zoomed closely together with Troy in the center, slightly ahead of Mullet and Moran, bearing down upon the Bulgarians. I recognized it as the Hawkshead Attacking Formation which lead to a Porkskoff Ploy right after. I read a book about Quidditch formations, which I had never bothered to use any of them. I just played. And it worked. Plus, it's not like I was the captain of the team.

"TROY SCORES!" Bagman roared once Levski caught it and sunk it into the hoop, causing the stadium to shudder with a roar of applause and cheers. "Ten zero to Ireland!" I fist pumped while leaning further back into my seat.

"Let's go," I said in a type of hype whisper. I was into this game now.

"What?" Harry yelled, looking wildly around through his Omnioculars. "But Levski's got the Quaffle!"

"Harry, if you're not going to watch at normal speed, you're going to miss things!" Hermione shouted, who was dancing up and down, waving her arms in the air while Troy did a lap of honor around the field.

"What she said," I said offhandedly, paying more attention to the game now.

The Irish Chasers were top notch. Dangerous solo; even more so when together. They were practically a telepathic team; working so well with each other with teamwork and coordination that they were going to be a hard bunch to beat.

Within ten minutes, Ireland had scored twice more, bringing their lead to thirty-zero and causing a thunderous tide of roars and applause from the green-clad supporters.

The match became still faster, but more brutal. Volkov and Vulchanov, the Bulgarian Beaters, were whacking the Bludgers as fiercely as possible at the Irish Chasers, and were starting to prevent them from using some of their best moves; twice they were forced to scatter, and then, finally, Ivanova managed to break through their ranks; dodge the Keeper, Ryan; and score Bulgaria's first goal. It was good coordination using the Beaters and the Chasers. I had to give that to Bulgaria.

"Fingers in your ears!" Mr. Weasley bellowed as the Veela started to dance in celebration. I ignored this as I had just a bit more willpower than most people and was able to continue to focus on the game.

"Dimitrov! Levski! Dimitrov! Ivanova - oh I say!" roared Bagman.

One hundred thousand wizards gasped as the two Seekers, Krum and Lynch, plummeted through the center of the Chasers, so fast that it looked as though they had just jumped from airplanes without parachutes. But I saw no sign of the Snitch. Then I knew exactly what Krum was doing.

"He's feinting! Lynch, pull up!" I yelled, standing up from my seat to yell it out onto the field.

"They're going to crash!" Hermione screamed next to Harry.

She was half right - at the very last second, Krum pulled out of the dive and spiraled off. Lynch, however, hit the ground with a dull thud that could be heard throughout the stadium. A huge groan rose from the Irish seats and I sat down in my seat heavily. I called it. I knew that was exactly what he was going for. The Wronski Feint.

"Fool!" Mr. Weasley bellowed. "Krum was feinting!"

"It's time-out!" Bagman roared. "As trained mediwizards hurry onto the field to examine Aidan Lynch!"

"He'll be okay, he only got ploughed!" Charlie said reassuringly to Ginny, who was hanging over the side of the box, looking horror-struck. "Which is what Krum was after, of course..."

"Krum's a smart and skilled player. Pulled out of that dive a nano second before it was too late," I said, admiring the Seeker's skill. Krum flew like he was one with the broom; absolutely weightless. With him alone, Ireland might have a hard time getting that Snitch that will almost solidify their victory completely.

Lynch got to his feet at last, to loud cheers from the green-clad supporters, mounted his Firebolt, and kicked back off into the air. His revival seemed to give Ireland new heart. When Mostafa blew his whistle again, the Chasers moved into action with a skill unrivaled by anything.

After fifteen more fast and furious minutes, Ireland had pulled ahead by ten more goals, which was insane. We had done stuff like this in our Quidditch games, but these were the pros. They were now leading by one hundred and thirty points to ten, and the game was starting to get dirtier. It was not a surprise.

As Mullet shot toward the goal posts yet again, clutching the Quaffle tightly under her arm, the Bulgarian Keeper, Zograf, flew out to meet her. Instead of blocking her, it was like he was a Muay Thai novice trying to attack someone with the way he was swinging his elbows. His elbows caught her on the side of her head, and the whistle blowed. I managed to keep myself in my seat on that one. I was trying to maintain as much composure as possible before I went completely ballistic.

"And Mostafa takes the Bulgarian Keeper to task for cobbing - excessive use of elbows!" Bagman informed the roaring spectators. "And - yes, it's a penalty to Ireland!"

The leprechauns, who had risen angrily into the air like a swarm of glittering hornets when Mullet had been fouled, now darted together to form the words "HA, HA, HA!" The Veela on the other side of the field leapt to their feet, tossed their hair angrily, and started to dance again.

"Look at the referee!" I heard Hermione say while giggling. I looked down to follow where she was looking, and I had to hold back a small laugh myself.

Hassan Mostafa had landed right in front of the dancing Veela, and was acting very oddly indeed. He was flexing his muscles and smoothing his mustache excitedly. It would seem that he's trying to show off in front of the Veela. The effect they had on men, I swear to goodness...

"Now, we can't have that!" Ludo Bagman said, though he sounded highly amused. "Somebody slap the referee!"

A mediwizard came tearing across the field, his fingers stuffed into his own ears, and kicked Mostafa hard in the shins. I laughed loudly as Mostafa seemed to come to himself. He looked exceptionally embarrassed and had started shouting at the Veela, who had stopped dancing and were looking mutinous.

"Oh, God. This doesn't bear good tidings..." Harry said.

"You said it," I said, looking closely at the field.

And we were right. The Bulgarian Beaters, Volkov and Vulchanov, landed on either side of Mostafa and began arguing furiously with him, gesticulating toward the leprechauns, who had now gleefully formed the words "HEE, HEE, HEE." Mostafa was not impressed by the Bulgarians' arguments. However, he was jabbing his finger into the air, clearly telling them to get flying again, and when they refused, he gave two short blasts on his whistle.

"Two penalties for Ireland!" Bagman shouted, and the Bulgarian crowd howled with anger. But I couldn't help but give off a pleased grin. "And Volkov and Vulchanov had better get back on those brooms... yes... there they go... and Troy takes the Quaffle..."

"And that's what happens when you can't control yourself," I said in a smug tone before focusing on the game again.

Play had now reached a level of ferocity beyond anything I had yet seen. The Beaters on both sides were acting without mercy: Volkov and Vulchanov in particular seemed not to care whether their clubs made contact with Bludger or human as they swung them violently through the air. Dimitrov shot straight at Moran, who had the Quaffle, nearly knocking her off her broom.

"Foul!" I roared along with the other Irish supporters, recalling the same tactic used by Marcus Flint multiple times. The very sight pissed me off very much.

"Foul!" echoed Ludo Bagman's magically magnified voice. "Dimitrov skins Moran - deliberately flying to collide there - and it's got to be another penalty - yes, there's the whistle!"

The leprechauns had risen into the air again, and this time, they formed a giant hand, which was making a very rude sign indeed at the Veela across the field. I couldn't help but grin at the sight, but the Veela didn't seem to like it in the least bit.

Instead of dancing, they launched themselves across the field and began throwing what seemed to be handfuls of fire at the leprechauns. Their faces were elongating into sharp, cruel-beaked bird heads, and long, scaly wings were bursting from their shoulders. They now looked liked demonized birds.

"Still not as bad as someone women I know," Harry said with a cheeky grin while looking towards Hermione. He got a smack on the back of his head for that remark, but he was still grinning as wide as me. Cheeky Harry was so much more fun than Hesitant Harry. Just like I was better off joking around rather than sullen all the time.

"And that, boys," Mr. Weasley yelled over the tumult of the crowd below, "is why you should never go for looks alone!"

Ministry wizards were flooding onto the field to separate the Veela and the leprechauns, but with little success; meanwhile, the pitched battle below was nothing to the one taking place above.

"Levski - Dimitrov - Moran - Troy - Mullet - Ivanova - Moran again - Moran - MORAN SCORES!"

But the cheers of the Irish supporters were barely heard over the shrieks of the Veela, the blasts now issuing from the Ministry members' wands, and the furious roars of the Bulgarians. The game recommenced immediately. The people on both sides didn't give a damn about the battle that was going on. They were going to finish this game no matter who won. Luckily this field was ten times bigger than ours. It'd be almost impossible to continue with the fight that was going on.

The Irish Beater Quigley swung heavily at a passing Bludger, and hit it as hard as possible toward Krum, who did not duck quickly enough. It hit him full in the face. I hissed.

"Goddamn, that has to hurt," I said, looking closer at Krum's face. His nose was definitely broken.

There was blood everywhere, but Hassan Mostafa didn't blow his whistle. He had become distracted, and for good reason. One of the Veela had thrown a handful of fire and set his broom tail alight.

"Time-out!" Ron yelled. "Ah, come on, he can't play like that, look at him -"

"Look at Lynch!" Harry yelled while pointing at the man in question.

I looked down at the Irish Chaser and looked ahead frantically to search for the Snitch. I spotted it after a few seconds of looking. This wasn't a Feint. This was the real deal. I stood up with my Omnioculars pressed hard against my face in excitement.

"Don't let Krum catch up! Go! Go! Go!" I exclaimed, moving my arm in circles while my hand was balled into a fist to show my support.

Half the crowd seemed to have realized what was happening; the Irish supporters rose in another great wave of green, screaming their Seeker on, but Krum was on his tail. Krum had to have been flying on sheer willpower alone. There were flecks of blood flying through the air behind him from his nose, but he was drawing level with Lynch now as the pair of them hurtled toward the ground again -

"They're going to crash!" Hermione shrieked.

"They're not!" Ron roared.

"Lynch is!" Harry and me yelled at the same time. "No way he's pulling out of that dive in time!"

And we were right - for the second time, Lynch hit the ground with tremendous force and was immediately stampeded by a horde of angry Veela. I groaned. I had no doubt Krum had a clear shot for the Snitch that time.

The Snitch, where's the Snitch?" Charlie bellowed along the row.

"He's got it - Krum's got it - it's all over!" Harry screamed. Krum, his red robes shining with blood from his nose, was rising gently into the air, his fist held high, a glint of gold in his hand.

The scoreboard was flashing BULGARIA: 160, IRELAND: 170 across the crowd, who didn't seem to have realized what had happened. Then, slowly, as though a great jumbo jet were revving up, the rumbling from the Ireland supporters grew louder and louder and erupted into screams of delight. I was also up on my feet with my arms spreadeagled in victory.

"IRELAND WINS!" Bagman shouted, who like the Irish, seemed to be taken aback by the sudden end of the match. "KRUM GETS THE SNITCH - BUT IRELAND WINS - good lord, I don't think any of us were expecting that!"

"What did he catch the Snitch for?" Ron bellowed, even as he jumped up and down, applauding with his hands over his head. "He ended it when Ireland were a hundred and sixty points ahead, the idiot!"

"He knew they were never going to catch up!" Harry shouted back over all the noise, also applauding loudly. "The Irish Chasers were too good... He wanted to end it on his terms, that's all...

"He was very brave, wasn't he?" Hermione said, leaning forward to watch Krum land as a swarm of mediwizards blasted a path through the battling leprechauns and Veela to get to him. "He looks a terrible mess..."

"No kidding," I said, looking through my Omnioculars and looking at his face. His nose might be permanently adjusted cause of that. But I would certainly hope not. Then again, he wouldn't look that much different.

"Vell, ve fought bravely," the Bulgarian said in a gloomy tone. I stood from my seat and stretched out my stiff limbs.

"You can speak English!" Fudge said, sounding outraged. "And you've been letting me mime everything all day!" I couldn't help but snicker at Fudge's misfortune before walking out of the door.

"Veil, it vos very funny," I heard the Bulgarian minister say.

"I've never seen you so into something to the point where you're getting to your feet and yelling," Harry said as we walked out.

"Well, I was very motivated not to break my streak of being right so far. So I was a little more motivated than usual," I said.

"I'll say. But today was a fun day. I'm glad you took us here," Harry said, giving me a hug on the side. I smiled and hugged him back as I put my right arm on his shoulder.

"My pleasure. I knew you were eager to see this. Not to mention I had fun as well. So this was well worth it," I said.

"Watch something happen that's going to negate it soon," Harry said.

"That's my line," I said with a shake of my head. But the fact was there. And like fate usually has it, something was going to happen soon. Something bad.

* * *

A/N: This was a long ass chapter. Longer than usual. But I had fun writing it. Once we get further into the story, we're going to start getting into the more epic moments of the story with the Triwizard Tournament. I'm likely going to change how Harry deals with the dragon in the tournament. Or at least mix it up a little bit more. And I got some surprises along the way as well. I won't spoil it though. But I have exams coming in a few weeks. Pray for me.


	3. Chapter 3 - Intense Trepidation

"Get up!" I said, shaking Ron roughly. Harry was already up with his wand out while I had a rifle drawn. Ron sat up abruptly from his sleep on my exclamation.

"Wha happened?" he asked.

"Just get up! It's important!" I exclaimed as I checked behind me for the others. They were getting outside and the Death Eaters didn't seem like they made it this far yet. Good.

The moment we made it outside, the loud jeering, roars of laughter, and drunken yells were drifting towards us. A crowd of wizards, tightly packed and moving together with wands pointing straight upward, were marching slowly across the field. They were wearing masks and dark robes. Death Eaters. The urge to open fire on them was strong, but I could indirectly get someone killed cause even I can't kill all of them by the time they could pull up _Protego_ shields. Priorities had to be in order.

"Move," I said in an authoritative tone as some of them stopped to look at what the Death Eaters were doing. I pulled Harry right along as he took a long look at the Death Eaters before shaking his head and moving on.

"We're going to help the Ministry!" Mr. Weasley shouted over all the noise, rolling up his own sleeves. "You lot - get into the woods, and stick together. I'll come and fetch you when we've sorted this out!"

"On me," I said, quickly taking charge. I quickly moved in front of the group to lead us into the forest. My senses were on full time alert; listening for the slightest thing that wasn't screaming, yelling, laughing or jeering. A yell from Ron caused me to quickly turn on my heel with my weapon raised. There wasn't a Death Eater in sight, though Ron was sprawled on the ground.

"Tripped over a tree root," he said angrily, getting to his feet again.

"Considering it's so dark, I'm not surprised. But light will just give us away to the Death Eaters. Just get up and keeping moving," I told him.

"Keep those gigantic feet away from roots too, Weasley," a drawling voice said from behind us. I didn't even have to turn around to know who that was.

"You wanna do us all a favor and piss off Malfoy?" Ron said, looking at the blond with an irritated look.

"Hadn't you better be hurrying along, now? You wouldn't like her spotted, would you?" Malfoy said, nodding at Hermione. At the same moment, a blast like a bomb sounded from the campsite, and a flash of green light momentarily lit the trees around us.

"They touch her, and I'm castrating them and hanging them in the trees like the animals they are," I said with a vicious snarl. My anger quickly sparked when it came to people I was close to, and this was no different. But Malfoy simply smirked.

"And I suppose they'll happily give the filthy Muggle a few spins in the air as well. Trust me, we all could use something to laugh about," Malfoy said. Harry quickly moved in front of Malfoy, his jaw locked in anger and gripping his wand tightly.

"Walk away Malfoy," Harry growled, his tone angry to where it sounded almost primal. On this, Malfoy's smile disappeared and his face became one that was like an ugly type of angry look. But he walked away, taking the look on Harry's face very seriously.

"I hope the Ministry catches his father," he said.

"I hope we run into him by himself so I can kill his ass and call it self defense. That's the best option, but I can't have that, I suppose catching him is the next best thing," I said in a bored tone.

Continuing forward, I noticed that there was a group of teenagers arguing. I grabbed Harry's shoulder to turn all of us away from them, but upon spotting us, a girl with curly hair came towards us.

 _"Où est Madame Maxine? Nous lui avons perdu,"_ the girl asked.

 _"Nous ne savons pas qui est. Pardonne-moi,"_ I told her, bringing out my French side. She smiled politely and nodded before moving back to her group. I could distinctly hear her say, 'Ogwarts.'

"Beauxbatons," Hermione muttered.

"What?" Harry asked.

"They must go to Beauxbatons," Hermione said. "You know... Beauxbatons Academy of Magic... I read about it in 'An Appraisal of Magical Education in Europe.'"

"That seems likely. Maybe the French enjoy Quidditch just as much as we do. Either way, I'm more focused on-" I said, cutting myself off as I noticed Ron didn't have his wand out. "Why don't you have your wand out? I would think you would have it drawn in a dangerous situation like this." At this point, Ron rubbed this back of his head in an embarrassing fashion.

"I think I lost it," he said, making my eyes widen.

"You what?! And you didn't say anything?!" I exclaimed, spreading my arms wide.

"Calm down. I wasn't all that worried since I was with you all, but yeah. I put my hand in my pockets and all of sudden it wasn't there! Someone must've swiped it!" Ron exclaimed.

"Obviously. Even you don't lose your wand. But let's just keep moving for now. We'll retrace your steps all the way back to the camp if it's still intact and find it. Makes we wish I had put teleporters on your wands as well. But I'm pretty sure you both don't want to go through the surgery," I said in a conclusive voice.

"No," Ron said, shaking his head.

"I'm fine," Hermione said.

"Thought so. Anyway, let's just keep moving," I said, continuing forward. I kept a particular side view of Ron cause he didn't have his wand. We were down a wand, and that was more suitable for covering all bases. Now I have to definitely keep an eye out.

At one point, we had reached a clearing where there were three Veela standing in a clearing surrounded by a gaggle of young wizards, all of whom were talking very loudly.

"I pull down about a hundred sacks of Galleons a year!" one of them shouted. "I'm a dragon killer for the Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures." I simply shook my head and gestured for us to keep moving. We moved past the Veela and at one point, I had to drag Ron's eyesight away from the Veela to keep him moving. Honestly, I knew Veela were beautiful, but that was ridiculous.

"This should be a good spot to wait things out," I said as we reached the heart of the woods. It was nice and quiet. No one was around and I cut on AS vision. Not long after I did that, I saw a presence from behind a couple of tress. I looked at Hermione and Harry while pointing at the direction I saw the presence. They nodded and began moving into a surprise attack position with Ron right behind Hermione. I raised my rifle at the person, my finger poised to shoot.

"Who are you?" I asked in a commanding tone.

"Ludo Bagman. I reckon you're intending to try to kill me with whatever is in your hand?" the man said. I deactivated AS vision and it sure enough was Ludo. But he no longer looked buoyant and rosy-faced; there was no more spring in his step. He looked very white and strained.

"Dammit Bagman. What are you doing way out here? Old Death Eaters have started a riot at the campsite! Masks and everything," I told him.

"Damn them!" Bagman swore before Disapparating.

"Not exactly on top of things, Mr. Bagman, is he?" Hermione said with a frown.

"He was a great Beater, though," Ron said. "The Wimbourne Wasps won the league three times in a row while he was with them."

We then sat down in a wider area after a few more minutes of walking, and Ron took out his small figure of Krum out of his pocket, set it down on the ground, and watched it walk around.

"I hope the others are okay," Hermione said after a while.

"I have faith that they'll be alright," I said.

"Imagine if your dad catches Lucius Malfoy," Harry said, sitting down next to Ron and watching the small figure of Krum slouching over the fallen leaves. "He's always said that he'd like to get something on him."

"That'd wipe the smirk off old Draco's face, all right," Ron said.

"Those poor Muggles, though," Hermione said nervously. "What if they can't get them down?"

"They will," Ron said reassuringly. "They'll find a way."

"I almost want to leave. Wouldn't hurt to send some of those Death Eaters home in a body bag," I said, summoning a Galleon to my hand and flipping it idly.

"Why aren't you? You'd be a big help," Ron said.

"Because I'm not leaving you all alone. Ron doesn't have a wand, and even though Hermione knows enough spells to inform an army and Harry's a practiced hand, getting overwhelmed is still very much a possibility," I told them.

"So you're concerned about us?" Ron questioned.

"Basically. You three are my priority. Not my bloodlust," I said, still flipping my coin.

"That's definitely reassuring. Thank you," Hermione said.

"Of course. Though-" I immediately stopped in my sentence. My ears pricked with the sound of someone nearing our clearing. I looked at the others and they nodded at me, already knowing what to do. I moved closer to the sound of the steps and saw someone near my field of vision. The walk wasn't unbalanced or panicky. It was smooth and confident. It definitely looked like a Death Eater, but it could've also been an Auror. But before I could inquire any further, the person raised their arm in the air.

 _"MORSMORDRE!"_ the man's yelled.

Slowly in the sky, something that was akin to a leprechaun formation was shaping in the sky, but it was no traditional formation. Rather, a colossal skull, comprised of what looked like emerald stars, with a serpent protruding from its mouth like a tongue. This left no doubt in my mind that these were Death Eaters.

"The Dark Mark," I whispered in the air. "Does that mean someone died?" The blood in my veins froze at the thought, but they were almost immediately ignited. I took my aim at the figure, but quick enough to move out of the way of my bullets, a small figure tackled the Death Eater and then they disappeared. There was no loud crack, so it wasn't a Disapparation. The whole place was filled with screams after the Dark Mark entered the air, and I jumped down from the tree I had taken a vantage point on. The others converged on me almost immediately.

"We need to get out of here," Hermione said, her face white and terrified. But before we could move another inch, over a dozen of wizards had Apparated all around us.

"DOWN!" I yelled, my voice loud and commanding.

"STUPEFY!" roared twenty voices - there was a blinding series of red flashes. But these were stunning spells, not Killing Curses. These were Aurors. But nevertheless, these many stunning spells would send us to the hospital. So I summoned and unpinned multiple flashbang grenades and threw them to where the Aurors were.

"Shield your eyes," I told them. They immediately did what I said and the white flash and bang stunned the Aurors to the point where they had to stop casting their spells and start wandering around. I immediately got up from the ground and ran towards the Aurors, banging their heads together to make sure I could get them all unconscious as fast as possible. I got about fourteen of them down before it had worn off on the remaining six.

The Auror that was nearest to me immediately turned toward me, but before he could get a spell off, I grabbed him by his hand, kicked his knee to force him into a kneel, and kicked him in his jaw to keep him down. I also used the momentum from the kick to keep moving. Moving the next dude, I simply grabbed his head while evading his spells and headbutted him to knock him out.

 _"Gotta go fast,"_ I thought to myself as I kept moving. I kicked one dude in the chest to knock him down the ground while throwing a knife in another Auror's knee. I then grabbed his unconscious buddy and threw him at the guy I had thrown the knife at, who was definitely larger than he was to keep him pinned to the ground while kicking their wands to the side. Then with two bangs from two other wands, the remaining two Aurors that were focused on me were suddenly hit with Petrifying curses and fell to the ground motionless.

"Stop!" yelled a voice that I recognized. But nonetheless, I turned with two incendiary Uzi sub-machine guns while I was lowered into a type of pose with my legs turned to the side as well as my arms for a quick turn around. I could see that Mr. Weasley was running towards us with Mr. Crouch not far behind. I did several spins where I stood to get back to my feet while putting my weapons away.

"You should really tell the Aurors to pay attention to who they're shooting," I said, crossing my arms. He nodded before turning to the others, who had just approached us.

"Well, at least we had it handled," Harry said, rubbing his shoulder. But he didn't pocket his wand. Neither did Hermione.

"It's a good thing you all are alright. I was-"

"Out of the way, Arthur," a cold, curt voice said.

It was Mr. Crouch. He looked furious, and considering the situation, I couldn't blame him.

"Which of you did it?" he snapped, his sharp eyes darting between them. "Which of you conjured the Dark Mark?" I looked at him with a look of disbelief.

"You're not suggesting we did _this?"_ I questioned, gesturing up at the Mark.

"We didn't do anything!" Ron said, who was rubbing his elbow and looking indignantly at his father. "What did you want to attack us for?"

"Do not lie, sir!" Mr. Crouch shouted. His wand was still pointing directly at Ron, and his eyes were popping - he looked slightly mad. "You have been discovered at the scene of the crime!"

"Put the wand down Barty. _Now,"_ I said. My tone was even, but firm. His wand then pointed to me, and I was restraining myself not to snap it right then and there. The look of anger on my face was no evident. I was not going to bother hiding it.

"We have you at the scene. You attacked many of our officials..."

"Because they fired at us! You can honestly not expect us to let them attack us, do you?" Harry exclaimed.

"Finally got everyone up," a witch in a woolen dressing gown said as several of the Ministry officials were on their feet, several others still struggling. "You did quite a number on them."

"They'll live. Anyway, if you want to follow a real lead, try checking over there," I said, pointing to the place where I spotted the caster. "I managed to spot the caster, but didn't get a good look. The stunners your Aurors fired at us might've hit them."

"You seem very well informed about how that Mark is summoned mister," Mr. Crouch said, keeping his popping eyes on me.

"You're a fucking idiot," me and Harry snapped at the same time. He seemed to look even more outraged by that, but before he could say another word, I knocked his wand out of his hand and pulled him close to my face with my teeth bared.

"You point another wand at my friends again, I will break every bone in your body. Trust me, I know where all two hundred and six of them are. It won't be a problem. I hope I made that clear enough," I said before throwing him back.

No one dared moved. Not even the witch at Barty's side. I often had the innate ability to remind people as to why they should fear me. At the very least be wary of me. And I don't reckon anyone talked to Crouch like he was beneath them, much less threaten him. The experience looked like it had shaken him a little. I then dusted off the front of his robes idly.

"Just remember that. I don't want to have to hurt you. Just do me the favor of leaving me no choice, ok?" I said in a pleasant tone, which was a very sudden change from the tone I used just seconds ago.

"Yes! We got them!" Amos Diggory yelled, immediately getting everyone's attention. "There's someone here! Unconscious! It's - but - blimey..."

"You've got someone?" Mr. Crouch shouted, sounding highly disbelieving. "Who? Who is it?"

We heard snapping twigs, the rustling of leaves, and then crunching footsteps as Mr. Diggory reemerged from behind the trees. He was carrying a tiny, limp figure in his arms. It was Winky. Even I widened my eyes at the sight of the House Elf being anywhere near the crime.

Mr. Crouch did not move or speak as Mr. Diggory deposited his elf on the ground at his feet. The other Ministry wizards were all staring at Mr. Crouch. For a few seconds Crouch remained transfixed, his eyes blazing in his white face as he stared down at Winky. Then he appeared to come to life again.

"This - cannot - be," he said jerkily. "No -"

He moved quickly around Mr. Diggory and strode off toward the place where he had found Winky.

"No point, Mr. Crouch," Mr. Diggory called after him. "There's no one else there."

But Mr. Crouch did not seem prepared to take his word for it. We could hear him moving around and the rustling of leaves as he pushed the bushes aside, searching.

"Bit embarrassing," Mr. Diggory said grimly, looking down at Winky's unconscious form. "Barty Crouch's house-elf... I mean to say..."

"Come off it, Amos," Mr. Weasley said quietly. "You don't seriously think it was the elf? The Dark Mark's a wizard's sign. It requires a wand."

"Yeah," Mr. Diggory said, "And she had a wand."

"What?" I questioned.

"Here, look." Mr. Diggory held up a wand and showed it to everyone. "Had it in her hand. So that's clause three of the Code of Wand Use broken, for a start. No non-human creature is permitted to carry or use a wand." Ignoring the fact that that is a dumbass fucking law, upon looking at Winky, I remembered the small figure that came out of the distance and tackled the real Death Eater. Did she try and stop him from doing it? If so, why? Does Mr. Crouch use his elf to bag Death Eaters?

Just then there was another pop, and Ludo Bagman Apparated right next to Mr. Weasley. Looking breathless and disorientated, he spun on the spot, goggling upward at the emerald-green skull.

"The Dark Mark!" he panted, almost trampling Winky as he turned inquiringly to his colleagues. "Who did it? Did you get them? Barty! What's going on?"

Mr. Crouch had returned empty-handed. His face was still ghostly white, and his hands and his toothbrush mustache were both twitching. Harry tapped me on my arm and gave me a questioning look, but I simply waved my hand slightly telling him I had this under control. I was going to wait until we found out what Winky said before telling them what I saw. Or if this got out of hand.

"Where have you been, Barty?" Bagman said. "Why weren't you at the match? Your elf was saving you a seat too - gulping gargoyles!" Bagman had just noticed Winky lying at his feet. "What happened to her?"

"I have been busy, Ludo," Mr. Crouch said, still talking in the same jerky fashion, barely moving his lips. "And my elf has been stunned."

"Stunned? By you lot, you mean? But why -?"

Comprehension dawned suddenly on Bagman's round, shiny face; he looked up at the skull, down at Winky, and then at Mr. Crouch.

"No!" he said. "Winky? Conjure the Dark Mark? She wouldn't know how! She'd need a wand, for a start!"

"And she had one," Mr. Diggory said. "I found her holding one, Ludo. If it's all right with you, Mr. Crouch, I think we should hear what she's got to say for herself." Perfect. Finally, we can possibly get somewhere.

Crouch gave no sign that he had heard Mr. Diggory, but Mr. Diggory seemed to take his silence for assent. He raised his own wand, pointed it at Winky, and said, _"Ennervate!"_

Winky stirred feebly. Her great brown eyes opened and she blinked several times in a bemused sort of way. Watched by all of us, she raised herself shakily into a sitting position.

She caught sight of Mr. Diggory's feet, and slowly and tremulously, raised her eyes to stare up into his face; then, more slowly still, she looked up into the sky.

She gave a gasp, looked wildly around the crowded clearing, and burst into terrified sobs.

"Elf!" Mr. Diggory said sternly. "Do you know who I am? I'm a member of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures!"

Winky began to rock backward and forward on the ground, her breath coming in sharp bursts. I rolled my eyes before moving in front of him.

"We'll never get anywhere with you sounding like a like an uncivilized savage," I said before lowering myself into a crouch. "Who did you tackle Winky?" My voice was kind, but it was firm. I wanted an answer.

"Tackle? What do you-"

"I saw the culprit after he shot the spell in the air. Before I could shoot him, he was tackled by a small figure. I could not see anything else after that. But I have a good guess as to who that figure was," I said, looking at Winky with a firm look. There was fire in my eyes, but there was a bit of sympathy as well. "Who was it Winky?"

"I - I - I could not see who it was sir! It was too dark!" she exclaimed. Her arm twitched slightly. I frowned, but I was more insistent this time.

"Surely you can't have seen a glimpse of his face?" I asked kindly.

"I did not sir," Winky told me, her arm twitching again. I sighed. She was defending the identity of the culprit for whatever reason. As much as I liked the House Elf, I could not allow that to slide.

"Why must you lie Winky?" I asked, shaking my head disappointingly. She came a lot more panicked at my words.

"I - I - I is not lying sir! I-" I immediately raised a hand to silence her.

"Enough," I said, my tone cold now. There was no more sympathy in my tone as well as my eyes. "Perhaps it is your master who was the culprit? Maybe that is why you are willing to lie."

"Now wait just a-" I raised a hand to silence him as well before looking back towards Winky.

"Are you lying to protect your master? Is that it?" I asked, using a soft tone that pushed her buttons harder than a loud one could ever do.

"It was not Master!" Winky yelled, looking almost angry. I raised an eyebrow. Her arm didn't twitch that time.

"You're not lying. That's the path you should be going on. _Tell me who it is,"_ I said, my tone hard. I was a rough interrogator when it came down to that. More rough cases involved torture, but I wasn't going to go that far.

"I - cannot say. He has silenced me to say it," Winky said, her arm lacking a twitch. I looked at her with a nod.

"It would've been easier just to say that. Things would've gotten more unpleasant if you kept lying to me," I said. To be honest, I still didn't accept her story. There was a motive behind her not relinquishing the man's identity. I didn't know if it was good or bad. But at the very least, I didn't think anyone got hurt or killed. Maybe it was just a bunch of old Death Eaters having their fun. My look became ugly. Some version of fun.

"Elf, where did you find this wand?" Mr. Diggory continued, holding the wand up in front of Winky. But I recognized it. I had seen Ron carry many times.

"I recognize that wand," I said, making everyone look at me. Though I didn't take it from him.

"Whose is it?" Mr. Diggory asked me.

"Ron's. He told me he felt in his pockets after he left the tent and it wasn't there. Looks like the culprit used it for the curse," I told him.

"Perhaps. There is a spell to discover the last spell a wand performed," Mr. Diggory said, pointing his wand near Ron's. _"Prior Incantato!"_

A gigantic serpent-tongued skull erupted from the point where the two wands met, but it was a mere shadow of the green skull high above us. Like it was the ghost of a spell.

 _"Deletrius!"_ Mr. Diggory shouted, and the smoky skull vanished in a wisp of smoke.

"So," Mr. Diggory said with a kind of savage triumph, looking down upon Winky, who was still shaking convulsively.

"I thought we already established that Winky didn't cast the spell," I questioned with a raised eyebrow.

"Amos," Mr. Crouch said suddenly in a curt tone before Mr. Diggory could speak. "I am fully aware that, in the ordinary course of events, you would want to take Winky into your department for questioning. I ask you, however, to allow me to deal with her."

Mr. Diggory looked as though he didn't think much of this suggestion at all, but it was clear to all of us that Mr. Crouch was such an important member of the Ministry that he did not dare refuse him.

"You may rest assured that she will be punished," Mr. Crouch added coldly.

"M-m-master..." Winky stammered, looking up at Mr. Crouch, her eyes brimming with tears. "M-m-master, p-p-please..."

Mr. Crouch stared back, his face somehow sharpened, each line upon it more deeply etched. There was no pity in his gaze. To be honest, I would give her none of the satisfaction either. Hermione moved to speak up, but I held her back.

"There's no defending Winky now. You may as well hold your tongue," I told her firmly. She seemed to look at me with a hard gaze, but I easily took it before she looked at the ground with a frustrated look.

"Winky has behaved tonight in a manner I would not have believed possible," he said slowly. "I told her to remain in the tent. I told her to stay there while I went to sort out the trouble. And I find that she disobeyed me. This means clothes."

"No!" Winky shrieked, prostrating herself at Mr. Crouch's feet. "No, master! Not clothes, not clothes!"

I looked at the House Elf with a simple disinterested look before turning to Mr. Diggory.

"I can assume we're done here. Ron's wand please, Mr. Diggory," I said. He nodded and handed me his wand before I handed it back to Ron, who pocketed it.

"Come on, you three," Mr. Weasley said quietly. But Hermione didn't seem to want to move; her eyes were still upon the sobbing elf. "Hermione!" His tone was a lot more insistent. She turned and followed the rest of us out of the clearing.

"What's going to happen to Winky?" Hermione asked the moment we had left the clearing.

"More than likely she'll have to find another master. She'll be remotely fine as long as her master isn't someone like Lucius Malfoy," I said evenly.

"You sound as if... as if you don't even care!" Hermione exclaimed.

"It's because I don't. I heard the meaning between that 'silenced by him' bullshit. I don't think the culprit did. I have my suspicions that Crouch told her she couldn't say who," I told her.

"What makes you say that?" Harry asked me.

"She didn't specify who she meant by 'he,' so I'm lead to believe that Crouch is tied to this somewhat. It's a hunch, but as well all know, my hunches tend to be correct," I said.

"The way they were treating her!" Hermione said furiously. "Mr. Diggory, calling her 'elf' all the time... and Mr. Crouch! He knows she didn't do it and he's still going to sack her! He didn't care how frightened she'd been, or how upset she was - it was like she wasn't even human!"

"She's not," I said simply. "And that's the problem right there." Hermione had nothing more to say to that.

As we walked through the camp, we saw that there were several campsites that were still smoking from the carnage, the Death Eaters no where to be found. Then Charlie's head poked out his tent as we approached the camp.

"Dad, what's going on?" he called through the dark. "Fred, George, and Ginny got back okay, but the others -"

"I've got them here," Mr. Weasley said, bending down and entering the tent. We followed after him shortly.

Bill was sitting at the small kitchen table, holding a bedsheet to his arm, which was bleeding profusely. Charlie had a large rip in his shirt, and Percy was sporting a bloody nose. Fred, George, and Ginny looked unhurt, though shaken.

"Did you get them, Dad?" Bill asked sharply. "The person who conjured the Mark?"

"No," Mr. Weasley said. "We found Barry Crouch's elf holding Ron's wand, but we're none the wiser about who actually conjured the Mark."

"What?" Bill, Charlie, and Percy said together.

"Ron's wand?" Fred said.

"Mr. Crouch's elf?" Percy said, sounding thunderstruck.

"It's been a crazy night folks. Let's start from the top," I said. Then all of us began explaining what happened when we went out to the forest to wait out the Death Eaters. At the end, Percy swelled indignantly.

"Well, Mr. Crouch is quite right to get rid of an elf like that!" he said. "Running away when he expressly told her not to... embarrassing him in front of the whole Ministry... how would that have looked, if she'd been brought up in front of the Department for the Regulation and Control -"

"She didn't do anything - she was just in the wrong place at the wrong time!" Hermione snapped at Percy, who looked very taken aback.

"Hermione, a wizard in Mr. Crouch's position can't afford a house-elf who's going to run amok with a wand!" Percy said pompously, recovering himself.

"She didn't run amok!" Hermione shouted. "She just picked it up off the ground!"

"Look, can someone just explain what that skull thing was?" Ron said impatiently. "It wasn't hurting anyone... Why's it such a big deal?"

"I told you, it's You-Know-Who's symbol, Ron," Hermione said, before anyone else could answer. I gave her a knowing look about not using Voldemort's name, but she ignored it and continued. "I read about it in 'The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts.'"

"And it hasn't been seen for thirteen years," Mr. Weasley said quietly. "Of course people panicked...it was almost like seeing You-Know-Who back again."

"I don't get it," Ron said, frowning. "I mean... it's still only a shape in the sky..."

"That's because you don't understand," I said, sitting up from my seat. "Death Eaters were known to put the Dark Mark in the sky whenever they had killed someone. You find that Mark over your house or someone else's house, whoever resided there was dead. And they were all over the place when Voldemort first reigned." I ignored the flinching from most people and continued. "It inspires fear in anyone who was taught what happened in the past, and you can bet your ass it was worse for the people who actually lived it."

"Exactly. The fear it inspired. The sheer terror. You have no idea," Mr. Weasley said.

"Well, it didn't help us tonight, whoever conjured it," Bill said, removing the sheet from his arm to check on his cut. "It scared the Death Eaters away the moment they saw it. They all Disapparated before we'd got near enough to unmask any of them. We caught the Robertses before they hit the ground, though. They're having their memories modified right now."

"No one got killed right?" I asked, concern in my tone.

"No. Everyone's fine. They were all drunk, stumbling. This night was all about having fun for them," Bill said grimly.

"Some idea of fun," I said just as grimly.

"But how many of Voldemort's supporters -" Harry began. Everybody flinched - like most of the wizarding world, the Weasleys always avoided saying Voldemort's name. Harry as well as me rolled his eyes. "You all weary me with that. Anyway, how many of his supporters managed to stay out of Azkaban?"

"You want legally or by evading capture?" Mr. Weasley asked.

"Both," Harry said.

"Well, legally, which basically meant they feigned being under the Imperius Curse, you have dozens of people that got out of it. As far as evasion went, more than likely hundreds. Maybe thousands," Mr. Weasley told me, making me lean back in my chair with a deep sigh. That basically meant he had an army waiting for him when he returned. Fuck.

"Listen, it's very late, and if your mother hears what's happened, she'll be worried sick. We'll get a few more hours sleep and then try and get an early Portkey out of here," Mr. Weasley said.

"I could definitely use the rest. They aren't coming back anytime soon, so I don't have to be paranoid and stand outside the tent the rest of the night," I said, standing up and rubbing my neck.

We climbed back into our bunks and I laid my head down while standing directly up.

"These turns of events are not turning out to be promising," Harry said.

"No. They aren't. First your scar, and now this? I see some foreshadowing happening. And it's not leading to anything good," I said, remembering when he came to me and Sirius about this. The fact that he saw a Muggle man being murdered from Voldemort's point of view suggested he had a connection in the man's mind. Harry's Occlumency was alright, but when he was asleep, it wasn't as good.

"I'm afraid of that as well. Though like the previous years, we'll have to wait and see what happens," Harry said.

"Yeah, we will. Night," I said.

"Night," Harry said.

* * *

A/N: Ok, if you're wondering why Crouch used Ron's wand instead of Harry's, I have a logical reason and an excuse. The logical reason is that since I am now watching the tournament, the seating arrangements would've been different. And Ron would've been a more vulnerable candidate for a wand pickpocket. Plus Harry would've felt it cause of my character. The excuse is that Harry now has a teleporter installed in his wand. If Crouch used his wand and Harry found out it was missing, he would've just teleported it back to him. Thus not creating all of this drama. And we wouldn't want that.


	4. Chapter 4 - The Triwizard Tournament

"Ah, how I love waterproof wear," I said as walked in the school relatively dry.

"Lucky you," Ron said moodily as he walked in after me, drenched to the bone. I simply smirked at him before continuing. I took a seat that was closest to the exit, which was somewhere in the middle because of the people who had made it up here before us. Hermione and Harry had cast Drying Charms on themselves, so they were smirking as they looked at their friend. I smiled. Who knew Hermione had it in her to make a little joke?

"Good evening," Nearly Headless Nick said brightly as he beamed at us. I gave him a kind smile in response.

"Says who?" Ron said moodily, shaking his head of water and emptying his shoes of water. "Hope they hurry up with the Sorting. I'm starving."

"Me too," I said, placing my hand on my right cheek in boredom.

"Hiya, Harry!"

It was Colin Creevey, a third year to whom Harry was something of a hero. Harry cringed while I simply patted his shoulder. I'd suggest for him to talk to him, but I'd rather let him figure it out to do so.

"Hey Colin," Harry said, somewhat disinterestedly.

"Harry, guess what? Guess what, Harry? My brother's starting! My brother Dennis!"

"Er - good," Harry said.

"He's really excited!" Colin said, practically bouncing up and down in his seat. "I just hope he's in Gryffindor! Keep your fingers crossed, eh Harry?"

"All right," Harry said. While he did hope his brother got in Gryffindor, he definitely wasn't going to lose sleep over it. I could tell.

"Who do you suppose is the new DADA teacher?" I asked. I was looking up at the table, surveying the teachers while Colin and Harry were 'talking,' and there were two empty seats. Though Hagrid was still dealing with the first years and McGonagall was probably putting a drying spell in the hall.

"You think they managed to get one this year?" Hermione asked.

"I don't think they would start the term unless they got a teacher. At least without a prior warning. They wouldn't wait until school started to announce it, so it's unlikely that's the announcement," I deduced.

We continued this discussion until Hagrid came into the Hall with the first years. All of them were shivering with a combination of cold and nerves as they filed along the staff table and came to a halt in a line facing the rest of the school - all of them except the smallest of the lot, a boy with mousy hair, who was wrapped in Hagrid's big ass moleskin overcoat. When he had lined up with his terrified-looking peers, he caught Colin Creevey's eye, gave a double thumbs-up, and mouthed, 'I fell in the lake!' He looked positively delighted about it. That must've been his brother. I shook my head. Goodness gracious, there were about to be two of them.

McGonagall laid the Sorting Hat on the stool, but I was still keeping my eye on the entrances of this place, wondering if the new DADA teacher would show up soon. As the song sang, I kind of tuned it out. Not because I didn't care. More or less, I was still paying attention to the entrances.

"Colin, I fell in!" This shrill voice broke me me out my daze after a few minutes, and I looked around to see that Colin's brother was nearing our table. Looks like he got sorted into Gryffindor. "It was brilliant! And something in the water grabbed me and pushed me back in the boat!"

"Cool!" Colin said, just as excitedly. "It was probably the giant squid, Dennis!"

"Wow!" Dennis said, as though nobody in their wildest dreams could hope for more than being thrown into a storm-tossed, fathoms-deep lake, and pushed out of it again by a giant sea monster. Interesting priorities.

"Dennis! Dennis! See that boy down there? The one with the black hair and glasses? See him? Know who he is, Dennis?" Colin said, making Harry groan and plop his face on the table in front of him. I held in a laugh before focusing on the entrances again.

"Hey." Harry tapped me on my shoulder after he took his face off the table. "You think we should talk to the others about, you know... France?" My mouth thinned, but I couldn't deny that I wanted them to know. Though after what happened, I didn't have the strength to relive it so soon.

"Not now. Eventually. I want to be reminded of it as little as possible," I told him. He nodded solemnly while I idly messed with the glass next to me. But I also noticed that the last student had finally been sorted and Dumbledore had began talking. I was trying to put the situation out of my mind so that I could bother myself to listen.

"I have only two words to say to you," Dumbledore said. "Tuck in."

"Hear, hear!" Harry and Ron said loudly as the empty dishes filled magically. I shook my head, but I didn't say anything as I piled my plate on with food just as eagerly as them.

"Aaah, 'at's be'er," Ron said, with his mouth full of mashed potato.

"You're lucky there's a feast at all tonight, you know," Nearly Headless Nick said. "There was trouble in the kitchens earlier."

"What happened?" I said as I took a bite from the fried chicken on my plate.

"Peeves, of course," Nick said, shaking his head, which wobbled dangerously. He pulled his ruff a little higher up on his neck. "The usual argument, you know. He wanted to attend the feast - well, it's quite out of the question, you know what he's like, utterly uncivilized, can't see a plate of food without throwing it. We held a ghost's council - the Fat Friar was all for giving him the chance - but most wisely, in my opinion, the Bloody Baron put his foot down."

"Yeah, we thought Peeves seemed hacked off about something," Ron said darkly. "So what did he do in the kitchens?"

"Oh the usual," Nick said with a shrug. "Wreaked havoc and mayhem. Pots and pans everywhere. Place swimming in soup. Terrified the house-elves out of their wits -"

My head turned sharply at the clang sound that suddenly hit my ears on my right. Hermione had knocked over her goblet, the liquid staining the tablecloth, but her attention was focused completely on Nearly Headless Nick.

"There are house-elves here?" she said, staring, horror-struck, at Nearly Headless Nick. "Here at Hogwarts?"

"Certainly," Nick said, looking surprised at her reaction. "The largest number in any dwelling in Britain, I believe. Over a hundred."

"I've never seen one!" Hermione exclaimed.

"Well, they hardly ever leave the kitchen by day, do they?" Nick said. "They come out at night to do a bit of cleaning... see to the fires and so on... I mean, you're not supposed to see them, are you? That's the mark of a good house-elf, isn't it, that you don't know it's there?"

"But they get paid?" she said. "They get holidays, don't they? And - and sick leave, and pensions, and everything?" I put a hand on my forehead and I didn't blame Nick for laughing at her statement so much that his head flopped off. It just didn't make sense from a logical standpoint.

"Sick leave and pensions?" he said, pushing his head back onto his shoulders and securing it once more with his ruff. "House-elves don't want sick leave and pensions!" Hermione looked down at her hardly touched plate of food, then put her knife and fork down upon it and pushed it away from her.

"You not eating the food is not going to help matters," I told her as I took a bite of potatoes.

"Slave labor," Hermione said, breathing hard through her nose as she pushed her barely touched plate of food away from her. "That's what made this dinner. Slave labor."

"Well, guess you're not very appreciative, are you? They worked hard to make this food and you're not bothering to eat it," I said idly. But the impact of the words caused her to swivel her head around to look at me but then she shook her head as she looked at looked back at the opposite direction.

"I mean that." I said the words so seriously, that it was probably what caused her to look at me sideways the way she did. Then I simply shrugged then looked back at my food. I was focusing on my food and eating idly.

"Treacle tart, Hermione!" Ron said, deliberately wafting its smell toward her as he saw she wasn't eating. "Spotted dick, look! Chocolate gateau!"

Hermione gave him a look that was similar to one Professor McGonagall, so he decided to go ahead and give up. I wasn't even going to bother to say anything. I can't be sure if he was just messing with her and being an ass or actually acting for her well being cause she wasn't eating. Guessing from how he acts, I would wager on the first thing. And that upsets me.

When the puddings too had been demolished, and the last crumbs had faded off the plates, leaving them sparkling clean, (Not to mention me listening to Hermione mutter 'slave labor' under her breath the whole time), Dumbledore got to his feet again. The Hall was immediately stricken with silence.

"So!" Dumbledore said, smiling around at us all. "Now that we are all fed and watered," ("Hmph!" Hermione said while Harry putting a relaxing hand on her shoulder) "I must once more ask for your attention, while I give out a few notices."

"Mr. Filch, the caretaker, has asked me to tell you that the list of objects forbidden inside the castle has this year been extended to include Screaming Yo-yos, Fanged Frisbees, and Ever-Bashing Boomerangs. The full list comprises some four hundred and thirty-seven items, I believe, and can be viewed in Mr. Filch's office, if anybody would like to check it."

The corners of Dumbledore's mouth twitched. As if he doubted anyone would bother check the list. I could definitely believe it, and I grinned as well. Then he continued.

"As ever, I would like to remind you all that the forest on the grounds is out-of-bounds to students, as is the village of Hogsmeade to all below third year.

"It is also my painful duty to inform you that the Inter-House Quidditch Cup will not take place this year." That statement hit me like a truck, and I froze on the spot. Regardless of what some people believed, I enjoyed playing on the team almost more than anything at this school. Not just for kicking the crap out of the Slytherins, but for the fun I had with my teammates and just the general fun overall. If Wood hadn't left at the end of this year, he would've fainted at that news.

"What?" Harry gasped before glancing at Fred and George. I looked at them too, and they were mouthing soundlessly at Dumbledore.

"This is due to an event that will be starting in October," he continue. "and continuing throughout the school year, taking up much of the teachers' time and energy - but I am sure you will all enjoy it immensely. I have great pleasure in announcing that this year at Hogwarts -"

But at that moment, there was a deafening rumble of thunder and the doors of the Great Hall banged open. I immediately looked toward that direction and laid my eyes on a man I met two years ago. I recall his name being Mad-Eye Moody when he questioned me about that incident with the Daywalker. That also got me indirectly thinking about Tonks, and I cursed my mind while trying to rid myself of the images. Yet I couldn't stop thinking about bubblegum colored hair.

"You alright?" Harry asked me.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm just spacing out a little. Thinking back to the Daywalker thing," I said. It technically wasn't a lie.

"Oh, I remember that. Suppose it was the most vulnerable I've ever seen you," Harry said.

"I guarantee you this. If he hadn't gotten the element of surprise on me when I thought he was going to die by my gunshot, the fight would've been a lot different," I said.

"I have no doubt of that," Harry said with a proud smile. I gave him one of my own as well. I knew I brought out the potential in this kid. It's more than likely that, as sad but true as it sounded, if he had met Ron before me, that potential would've gone to waste. Though if he meant Hermione, he'd be particularly smart, but not much of fighter. Then again, Harry had that fire in him that was hard to squash. Even with her direction, he'd probably still be somewhat defiant and have that undeniable passion to solve problems. Violently, if necessary.

"May I introduce our new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher?" Dumbledore asked, stopping our conversation for us to look back at what he was saying. "Professor Moody."

None of the staff other than Dumbledore and Hagrid clapped for him. Me and Harry were the only students to clap for him, awkwardly joined by Ron and Hermione soon after. The applause came to an abrupt halt when the awkwardness of the situation began to sink in.

"Didn't you say your dad went to go help Mad-Eye with a situation earlier?" I asked.

"I think so," Ron said in a low, awed voice.

"What happened to him?" Hermione whispered. "What happened to his face?"

"From the looks of it, he's been through shit I've been through. Just more magical and far more unfortunate," I said grimly as I examined the man's scars. It almost seemed like his whole body was covered in scars. His leg was gone, one of his eyes gone, his nose was missing chunks. This man was a veteran in the field of war; you had to be blind not to see that.

"As I was saying," Dumbledore continued, still beaming at all of the students. "we are to have the honor of hosting a very exciting event over the coming months, an event that has not been held for over a century. It is my very great pleasure to inform you that the Triwizard Tournament will be taking place at Hogwarts this year." My eyebrows rose at this bit of information. The things I've heard about the Tournament involved great risk to life with the reward being money and fame. Sounded like the Roman Coliseum from ancient times.

"You're JOKING!" Fred said loudly.

"I am not joking, Mr. Weasley," he said, "though now that you mention it, I did hear an excellent one over the summer about a troll, a hag, and a leprechaun who all go into a bar."

Professor McGonagall cleared her throat loudly while I couldn't help but give off a small chuckle at Dumbledore's antics.

"Er - but maybe this is not the time... no..." Dumbledore said, "where was I? Ah yes, the Triwizard Tournament... well, some of you will not know what this tournament involves, so I hope those who do know will forgive me for giving a short explanation, and allow their attention to wander freely.

"The Triwizard Tournament was first established some seven hundred years ago as a friendly competition between the three largest European schools of wizardry: Hogwarts, Beauxbatons, and Durmstrang. A champion was selected to represent each school, and the three champions competed in three magical tasks. The schools took it in turns to host the tournament once every five years, and it was generally agreed to be a most excellent way of establishing ties between young witches and wizards of different nationalities - until, that is, the death toll mounted so high that the tournament was discontinued."

"Death toll?" Hermione whispered, looking alarmed. This is definitely what caught my attention and something I need to address.

"If that's the case, why are you reviving it?" I questioned. Every head in the Hall turned to look at me, and my look was as serious as you could get. There was no smile on Dumbledore's face as he addressed my question with the same seriousness.

"Do not worry, Mr. Morgan. With the help of our own departments of International Magical Cooperation and Magical Games and Sports, we have worked hard over the summer to ensure that this time, no champion will find himself or herself in mortal danger. You can be rest assured," he told me. With some heads still looking at me as they waited on my reaction to it, I simply nodded. It should be safer considering precautions, but some things were probably going to to be out of our hands.

"Anyway," Dumbledore continued. "the heads of Beauxbatons and Durmstrang will be arriving with their short-listed contenders in October, and the selection of the three champions will take place on Halloween. An impartial judge will decide which students are most worthy to compete for the Triwizard Cup, the glory of their school, and a thousand Galleons personal prize money."

"I'm going for it!" Fred Weasley hissed down the table, his face lit with enthusiasm at the prospect of such glory and riches. He was not the only person who seemed to be visualizing himself as the Hogwarts champion. At every House table, people were either gazing raptly at Dumbledore, or else whispering fervently to their neighbors. But then Dumbledore spoke again, and the Hall quieted once more. I rolled my eyes. People will flock to money and fame even if there could be a lot of personal risk involved. Something I could never understand about some people.

"What do you make of it?" Harry asked me. I gave him a gesture to look back up at Dumbledore as he was about to speak again before I answered his question.

"Eager though I know all of you will be to bring the Triwizard Cup to Hogwarts," he said, "the heads of the participating schools, along with the Ministry of Magic, have agreed to impose an age restriction on contenders this year. Only students who are of age - that is to say, seventeen years or older - will be allowed to put forward their names for consideration. This -" Dumbledore raised his voice slightly, for several people had made noises of outrage at these words, and the Weasley twins were suddenly looking furious, while I nodded in approval- "is a measure we feel is necessary, given that the tournament tasks will still be difficult and dangerous, whatever precautions we take, and it is highly unlikely that students below sixth and seventh year will be able to cope with them. I will personally be ensuring that no underage student hoodwinks our impartial judge into making them Hogwarts champion." His light blue eyes twinkled as they flickered over Fred's and George's mutinous faces. "I therefore beg you not to waste your time submitting yourself if you are under seventeen.

"The delegations from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang will be arriving in October and remaining with us for the greater part of this year. I know that you will all extend every courtesy to our foreign guests while they are with us, and will give your whole-hearted support to the Hogwarts champion when he or she is selected. And now, it is late, and I know how important it is to you all to be alert and rested as you enter your lessons tomorrow morning. Bedtime! Chop chop!"

"They can't do that!" George said, who had not joined the crowd moving toward the door, but was standing up and glaring at Dumbledore, who was talking with Mad-Eye Moody. "We're seventeen in April, why can't we have a shot?"

"They're not stopping me entering," Fred said stubbornly, also scowling at the top table. "The champions'll get to do all sorts of stuff you'd never be allowed to do normally. And a thousand Galleons prize money!"

"Yeah," Ron said, a faraway look on his face. "Yeah, a thousand Galleons..."

"Come on," I said gruffly, pulling them towards the Hall doors. On the way, the two twins decided to debate the ways in which Dumbledore might stop those who were under seventeen from entering the tournament.

"Who do you reckon might be deciding the champions?" Harry asked, making me elbow him.

"Don't encourage them," I said, but they ignored my sentence.

"Dunno," Fred said, "but it's them we'll have to fool. I reckon a couple of drops of Aging Potion might do it, George..."

"Dumbledore knows you're not of age, though," Ron said.

"Yeah, but he's not the one who decides who the champion is, is he?" Fred said shrewdly. "Sounds to me like once this judge knows who wants to enter, he'll choose the best from each school and never mind how old they are. Dumbledore's trying to stop us giving our names."

"People have died, though!" Hermione said in a worried voice as they walked through a door concealed behind a tapestry and started up another, narrower staircase.

"Yeah," Fred said airily, "but that was years ago, wasn't it? Anyway, where's the fun without a bit of risk? Hey, Ron, what if we find out how to get 'round Dumbledore? Fancy entering?"

"What d'you reckon?" Ron asked Harry. "Be cool to enter, wouldn't it? But I s'pose they might want someone older... Dunno if we've learned enough..."

"I definitely haven't," Neville said gloomily before Harry could even respond. I gave him a small stern look as I knew the kid was capable of sterner stuff. He just needed to work on it. "I expect my gran'd want me to try, though. She's always going on about how I should be upholding the family honor. I'll just have to - oops..."

Neville's foot had sunk right through a step halfway up the staircase. There were many of these trick stairs at Hogwarts; it was second nature to most of the older students to jump this particular step, but Neville's memory was notoriously poor. So I walked over to him and used one arm to effortlessly pull him out of the staircase. He gave me a thanks and I nodded before continuing, noticing a suit of armor was laughing wheezily.

"Shut it, you," Ron said, banging down its visor as they passed.

They made their way up to the entrance to Gryffindor Tower, which was concealed behind a large portrait of a fat lady in a pink silk dress.

"Password?" she said as they approached.

"Balderdash," George said, "a prefect downstairs told me."

We all walked through the portrait hole and before I went up to the staircase, I could see Hermione staring at the flames before muttering slave labor. I gave a low growl.

"If you say that one more time, I'm going to duct tape your mouth shut," I said in an aggravated tone, making the others laugh and Hermione flush with embarrassment. It may have been funny to them, but they weren't the ones who heard her mutter it all the way through dinner. The words were really grating on my nerves. I sighed and went upstairs to my room while immediately laying in my bed.

"I might go in for it, you know," Ron said sleepily through the darkness, "if Fred and George find out how to... the tournament... you never know, do you?"

"If you wanna do it, go for it," Harry said just as sleepily. " But I don't really care for it. I've gotten myself into enough danger without willingly signing up for it."

"I definitely agree with that statement," I said, appreciating the logic behind his decision.

"But you've never done it for anything," Ron reminded him.

"I have enough money and I don't even want the fame I was already given. It's bad enough just about everyone knows who I am," Harry told him.

"I guess. Anyway, night," Ron said.

"Night," Harry said. After that, I closed my eyes to go to sleep. But I almost immediately opened them after the thoughts about the World Cup sunk in. I couldn't help but think that, in some twisted way, the events were connected. What with the Dark Mark and the Death Eaters at the Cup, Harry's vision during the summer about Voldemort, and now the Triwizard Tournament. A competition that was known to be deadly. There had to be some connection. I just didn't know what it was.

* * *

A/N: Been a while since I updated this, but as I told everyone else, not only was my laptop broken, but I also got addicted to playing my PS4, so there's that. But I'm back.


	5. Chapter 5 - Constant Vigilance

"So what do you think of Moody?" Harry asked.

"He reminds me of me, which isn't too much of a good thing. His punishment style is pretty interesting," I said, managing to suppress a smirk at the idea of Malfoy bouncing up and down like he was made of rubber. He was definitely going to feel that in the morning. "But I think he'll have trauma after visiting the inside of Goyle's pants." Harry made a disgusted face as the idea of being in such a place was truly vile. Torture of the highest degree. If I was right in my assumptions, I wasn't the only one who thought it was a proper punishment. Besides Moody, that is.

"Fred, George, and Lee have a high opinion of him after his first lesson. They say he knows what it's like to fight the Dark Arts," Harry said.

"Which is what the students need. They need to know how nitty gritty it is. They don't need to see it, much less experience it, but at least they'll be somewhat prepared for what's to come," I said as we walked outside Moody's door. I looked around for Hermione, who again, was more late than us recently because of being in the library. And she wasn't lying about that. The question was why she was in there.

Right as I thought that, it seems she had the best timing as she had just arrived to the class. Just in time. The bell was about to ring after a few seconds.

"Been in the -"

"Library." Harry finished her sentence for her. "C'mon, quick, or we won't get decent seats."

We walked in, took a seat, and waited with books on our desk. I passed the time for Moody to arrive by flipping a coin, which was my favorite way of passing the time. Besides twirling a revolver, but this wasn't the place for that.

The dull clunking of Moody's wooden leg let me know he was here without even looking up. It kind of caused me to frown. That wooden leg would be an issue in the matter of stealth. By the many things I've heard about Moody, he was about as paranoid as me. So such a person would not overlook such a detail. I had to make a note to ask him about that. As a fellow master of paranoia.

"You can put those away," he growled, stumping over to his desk and sitting down. "Those books. You won't need them."

I raised an eyebrow, but made my book disappear on the spot. Ron looked positively excited. Looks like a hands on lesson was going to be the lesson today. I could definitely get down with that.

He then began to take roll call. When he looked at me, both eyes settled on me. I leaned back in my chair, my stare impassive as I stared him in his eyes without the remotest trace of a flinch. Then he smiled somewhat obscenely before continuing. The man had a smile that would terrify children.

"Right then," he said, when the last person had declared themselves present, "I've had a letter from Professor Lupin about this class. Seems you've had a pretty thorough grounding in tackling Dark creatures - you've covered boggarts, Red Caps, hinkypunks, grindylows, Kappas, and werewolves, is that right?"

There was a general murmur of assent.

"But you're behind - very behind - on dealing with curses," Moody said. "So I'm here to bring you up to scratch on what wizards can do to each other. I've got one year to teach you how to deal with Dark -"

"What, aren't you staying?" Ron blurted out.

Moody's magical eye spun around to stare at Ron; Ron looked extremely apprehensive, but after a moment Moody smiled. At least we know the man is capable of smiling, which I daresay even I wasn't capable of when I first arrived at this school.

 _"Says a lot about you, huh?"_ I thought. I immediately shook the thought out of my head. The man looks like he lost more physically. I lost more emotionally. At least, I would hope so. I wouldn't wish my life upon anyone. Well, maybe Malfoy. But the little prick probably cared about no one but himself. That seems to be the case given from what I've seen from him so far.

"You'll be Arthur Weasley's son, eh?" Moody said, ripping me out of my thoughts. "Your father got me out of a very tight corner a few days ago... Yeah, I'm staying just the one year. Special favor to Dumbledore... One year, and then back to my quiet retirement."

He gave a harsh laugh, and then clapped his gnarled hands together.

"So - straight into it. Curses. They come in many strengths and forms. Now, according to the Ministry of Magic, I'm supposed to teach you countercurses and leave it at that. I'm not supposed to show you what illegal Dark curses look like until you're in the sixth year. You're not supposed to be old enough to deal with it till then. But Professor Dumbledore's got a higher opinion of your nerves. He reckons you can cope, and I say, the sooner you know what you're up against, the better. How are you supposed to defend yourself against something you've never seen? A wizard who's about to put an illegal curse on you isn't going to tell you what he's about to do. He's not going to do it nice and polite to your face. You need to be prepared. You need to be alert and watchful. You need to put that away, Miss Brown, when I'm talking."

I couldn't help but smirk as I saw Lavender jump and blush. She had been showing Parvati her completed horoscope under the desk. Looks like that eye had more uses than just seeing. At least, that was my inference.

"So...do any of you know which curses are most heavily punished by wizarding law?"

Several hands rose tentatively into the air, including Ron's and Hermione's. But Moody's gaze turned to my emotionless and somewhat relaxed posture before pointing a finger at me.

"You. Mr. Morgan. Do you know?" he asked me.

"The three Unforgivable Curses. Imperius, Cruciatus, and Killing," I said with the grimmest expression on my face. The gazes of the students turned towards me; some of them apprehensive and even fearful. Moody walked over to where I was sitting and placed a hand on my desk while looking at me.

"Their effects. Tell me," he said.

"The Imperius acts as a type of mind control, if you want it in the simplest of terms. The Cruciatus is the purest form of torture. People have lost their minds if held under it too long. And the Killing is self-explanatory," I said tonelessly. The hollowness of my tone brought upon silence. Moody looked at me and gave a solid nod before walking over to his desk drawer, and taking out a glass jar. Three large black spiders were scuttling around inside it. I saw Ron recoil on the out of the corner of my eye when Moody did this. Ron was afraid of spiders, so this was expected.

He held the spider in the palm of his hand, pointed his wand at it, and muttered, _"Imperio!"_ The spider leapt from Moody's hand on a fine thread of silk and began to swing backward and forward as though on a trapeze. It stretched out its legs rigidly, then did a back flip, breaking the thread and landing on the desk, where it began to cartwheel in circles. Moody jerked his wand, and the spider rose onto two of its hind legs and went into what was unmistakably a tap dance.

Everyone was laughing - everyone except me and Moody. In fact, the only thing that was on my face was an intense disgust. If they knew what that curse was used for over ten years ago, they would not be laughing. The people who lived through that time period know. They really know.

"Think it's funny, do you?" Moody growled. "You'd like it, would you, if I did it to you?" The laughter died away almost instantly, and I had to hold back a smirk. That changed their moods real quick.

"Total control," Moody said quietly as the spider balled itself up and began to roll over and over. "I could make it jump out of the window, drown itself, throw itself down one of your throats..."

Ron gave an involuntary shudder.

"Years back, there were a lot of witches and wizards being controlled by the Imperius Curse," Moody said. "Some job for the Ministry, trying to sort out who was being forced to act, and who was acting of their own free will.

"The Imperius Curse can be fought, and I'll be teaching you how, but it takes real strength of character, and not everyone's got it. Better avoid being hit with it if you can. CONSTANT VIGILANCE!" he barked, and everyone jumped. Except me. I just had to fight the urge to draw a weapon. Completely normal, right?

Moody put the first spider back in the jar before drawing another one. Then he glanced at Neville before looking back at the spider.

"Next curse, as Mr. Morgan mentioned. The Cruciatus Curse. Otherwise known as the Torture Curse. Needs to be a bit bigger for you to get the idea though," Moody said in the gruffest voice. _"Engorgio! Crucio!"_

At once, the spider's legs bent in upon its body; it rolled over and began to twitch horribly, rocking from side to side. No sound came from it, but Harry was sure that if it could have given voice, it would have been screaming. Moody did not remove his wand, and the spider started to shudder and jerk more violently. Even the sight itself caused me to grimace because I could only imagine the pain that was coursing through that spider.

"Stop it!" Hermione said shrilly."

I glanced at her, who was not looking at Moody, but at Neville. His hands were clenched upon the desk in front of him, his knuckles white, his eyes wide and horrified. I knew that look well. That was the look of pure, paralyzing fear. The stuff cold, hard nightmares were made of.

Moody raised his wand. The spider's legs relaxed, but it continued to twitch.

 _"Reducio,"_ Moody muttered, and the spider shrank back to its proper size. He then put it back into the jar. This lesson was everything that I was hoping for, but not exactly expected. But I did agree with the lesson. They needed to know.

"Pain," Moody said softly as he pulled out the third spider. "You don't need thumbscrews or knives to torture someone if you can perform the Cruciatus Curse... that one was very popular once too. Now... I assume you all know what's coming next?"

The entire class gave a soft and hesitant nod. I looked at the spider with a stare hard enough to burn wood.

 _"Avada Kedavra!"_ Moody roared.

There was a flash of blinding green light and a rushing sound, as though a vast, invisible something was soaring through the air - instantaneously the spider rolled over onto its back, unmarked, but unmistakably dead. Several of the students stifled cries; Ron had thrown himself backward and almost toppled off his seat as the spider skidded toward him.

I looked at Harry, who was looking at the dead spider with something of a type of pity as well as pain. But the biggest thing I saw was resolve. As I had I taught him to have. It was something that was necessary in life.

Moody swept the dead spider off the desk onto the floor before looking at the class again.

"Not nice," he said calmly. "Not pleasant. And there's no countercurse. There's no blocking it. Only one known person has ever survived it, and he's sitting right in front of me."

I saw Harry look at him with the same type of resolve that was on his face earlier, but Moody simply took a sip from the flask on his belt before walking back to the front of the class. I could see that a faraway look began to overtake Harry's face, and I knew it was in my and Harry's best interest for him to try and figure it out himself.

 _"Avada Kedavra's_ a curse that needs a powerful bit of magic behind it - you could all get your wands out now and point them at me and say the words, and I doubt I'd get so much as a nosebleed. But that doesn't matter. I'm not here to teach you how to do it.

"Now, if there's no countercurse, why am I showing you? Because you've got to know. You've got to appreciate what the worst is. You don't want to find yourself in a situation where you're facing it. CONSTANT VIGILANCE!" he roared, and the whole class jumped again. But I was actually ready for it this time.

"Now... those three curses - Avada Kedavra, Imperius, and Cruciatus - are known as the Unforgivable Curses. The use of any one of them on a fellow human being is enough to earn a life sentence in Azkaban. That's what you're up against. That's what I've got to teach you to fight. You need preparing. You need arming. But most of all, you need to practice constant, never-ceasing vigilance. Get out your quills... copy this down..."

We then spent the rest of the class taking notes on the curses, though every detail about those curses were burned into the back of my brain. I want to have an hour with the motherfucker who made those curses. He made the Cruciatus Curse? I could show him or her some serious fucking pain. I know ways. Knowing everything there is to know about the body... knowing what it can take... what it takes to break... makes torture all the easier. And the more satisfying.

I had to blink away the relapse of sadism that popped in my mind as the bell rung. I walked out of the classroom distracted out of my mind, but then I remembered Neville, who looked as white as a sheet when the Torture Curse was brought up.

"Hurry up," she said tensely to us.

"Not the ruddy library again?" Ron said.

"No," Hermione said curtly, pointing up a side passage. "Neville." So she had noticed as well. Which was kinda of expected of her.

Neville was standing alone, halfway up the passage, staring at the stone wall opposite him with the same horrified, wide-eyed look he had worn when Moody had demonstrated the Cruciatus Curse.

"Neville?" Hermione said gently, causing Neville to turn around and look at her.

"Oh hello," he said, his voice much higher than usual. "Interesting lesson, wasn't it? I wonder what's for dinner, I'm - I'm starving, aren't you?"

"Neville, are you all right?" Hermione said.

"Oh yes, I'm fine," Neville gabbled in the same unnaturally high voice. "Very interesting dinner - I mean lesson - what's for eating?" I then stood in front of Hermione before looking at Neville with a soft look while putting a hand on his shoulder.

"I know that look. You're not alright if that's the look you have on your face," I told him as I heard clunking coming up from behind me.

"It's all right, sonny," he said to Neville in a much gentler growl than normal. "Why don't you come up to my office? Come on... we can have a cup of tea..."

Neville looked even more frightened at the prospect of tea with Moody. He neither moved nor spoke. Moody turned his magical eye upon Harry, to which I raised an eyebrow at.

"You all right, are you, Potter?"

"Yes," Harry said evenly.

Moody's blue eye quivered slightly in its socket as it surveyed Harry. Then he said, "You've got to know. It seems harsh, maybe, but you've got to know. No point pretending..."

"I know. Trust me, I know," Harry said with a nod. Moody gave him a nod back before looking over at Neville.

"Come on Longbottom. I've got some books that might interest you," Moody said. Neville looked at me, and I gave him a nod of reassurance before Neville allowed himself to be steered away by Moody. I rubbed my temples as I followed the others back to the common room. There was just a feeling in me that I couldn't shake about what was wrong with Neville. But I wasn't going to pry. It was his business.

* * *

"Not going to have a very good month, are you?" Hermione said sardonically to Ron, making me grin as I knew Ron's Divination essay was full of misfortunes that would be sure to strike him. So glad I didn't take that stupid fucking class.

"So glad I didn't take that stupid fucking class," Harry said. It took everything in me not to laugh like an insane person when Harry said that. He basically voiced my thoughts word for word. It was crazy how much he had grown to be like me.

"Why? It's an easy grade," Ron said, making me roll my eyes.

"At least I don't have to sit there and write about how I'm going to die or the awful things that'll happen to me three weeks from now. I got better stuff to do than that," Harry said. Ron simply shrugged. Like he always tended to do.

"You seem to be drowning twice," Hermione said, tilting her head.

"Oh am I?" Ron said, peering down at his predictions. "I'd better change one of them to getting trampled by a rampaging hippogriff."

"Don't you think it's a bit obvious you've made these up?" Hermione said.

"That's the thing. The old bat doesn't care. As long as we've made our predictions as depressing as possible, she really won't care," Ron said.

"Again, very glad I didn't take that class," me and Harry said at the same time. We both looked at each other at the same time and laughed. Ah, good stuff.

"That's still really weird," Ron said, shaking his head.

"Not for us," I said idly as I started flipping a coin in my hand.

"What's in the box?" Harry asked, plopping next to Hermione with his hands behind his head.

"Kind of you to ask," Hermione said with a smile at Harry before opening the lid and showing us the contents.

"Spew?" Harry questioned, picking up a badge and looking at it. "What's this about?"

"Not spew," Hermione said impatiently. "It's S-P-E-W. Stands for the Society for the Promotion of Elfish Welfare."

"Never heard of it," Ron said.

"Well, of course you haven't," Hermione said briskly. "I've only just started it."

"Yeah?" Ron said in mild surprise. "How many members have you got?"

"Well - if you three join - four," Hermione said, somewhat weakly.

"And you started this organization why?" I asked, already having an idea as to why.

"Well, I've been researching a lot of about Elf enslavement..."

"So _that's_ why you've been in the library so much," Ron said, making Hermione look at him impatiently.

"Can I finish?" she asked in a tone just as impatient as the look on her face. Ron nodded.

"Anyways, Elf enslavement goes back for centuries. I can't believe no one's done anything about it before now," Hermione said.

"If-"

"Hermione," Ron injected loudly to cut me off, making me stiffen with irritation. "Open your ears. They. Like. It. They like being enslaved!"

"Our short-term aims," Hermione said, speaking even more loudly than Ron, and acting as though she hadn't heard a word, "are to secure house-elves fair wages and working conditions. Our long-term aims include changing the law about non-wand use, and trying to get an elf into the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, because they're shockingly underrepresented."

"And how do we do all this?" Harry asked.

"We start by recruiting members," Hermione said happily. "I thought two Sickles to join - that buys a badge - and the proceeds can fund our leaflet campaign. You're treasurer, Ron - I've got you a collecting tin upstairs - and Harry, you're secretary, so you might want to write down everything I'm saying now, as a record of our first meeting."

"I'll tell you one thing. You're not going to get people spend two Sickles on a campaign, they more than likely don't care about supporting in the first place. Knuts might be more fitting," I told her.

"Then how will I earn money for this?" Hermione asked.

"How about this. If you're serious about this organization, if by the end of the year, if you haven't given up on it already, I'll give you a hundred Galleons to use for this project of yours," I said in a relaxed tone as I picked up a book and began to read it.

"I'll enjoy using that money for this by the end of the year," Hermione said with a bright smile. I hid my smirk behind my book as I tapped my foot to a type of rhythm.

"You do realize you're giving up a hundred Galleons for nothing, right?" Ron told me in a not so subtle voice, making Hermione glare at him.

"Certainly the money could go to better places. But if she is actually serious about doing something about this at least school-wide, she could possibly get somewhere with it. I mean, there has to be someone who agrees with this," Harry said, making press my fingers together as if I were a chef introducing a fine dish.

"I could not have said that any better myself," I said. Harry grinned.

"When I hang around you, it's just something I pick up," he said, making Hermione grin at us both. This idea could be good. Or it could go down the shitter before our eyes. Ron only shook his head at the whole situation before a post owl came in through the window. All of us looked at the owl curiously before it dropped a letter in Harry's lap. He opened the inside of it and saw it was from Sirius.

"What do you think he wants?" Hermione asked.

"Let's read it and see," I said, gesturing for Harry to read the letter.

Harry -

I'm flying north immediately. The pain of your scar earlier this summer plus a number of rumors that reached me even here. If your scar hurts again, go straight to Dumbledore - they're saying he's got Mad-Eye out of retirement, which means he's reading the signs, even if no one else is.

I'll be in touch soon. My best to Ron and Hermione. Keep your eyes open, Harry.

Sirius

"He's flying north?" Hermione whispered. "He's coming back?"

"I doubt he would come back if he didn't have a way to keep himself hidden. I don't think we have anything to worry about," I said, giving Harry a reassuring look at his worried one.

"I certainly hope so. Then again, it takes a lot of talent to become an Animagus at fifteen," Harry said, making me put a hand on his shoulder reassuringly.

"He'll be fine," I said. Then Harry nodded. Thought Hermione and Ron looked at each other with a somewhat worried look.

* * *

"You're going to what?" I questioned with a raised eyebrow.

"Use the Imperius Curse on each of you. Are you hard of hearing?" Moody asked.

"No. Still an interesting step to take," I said calmly.

"Dumbledore wants you taught what it feels like," Moody said, his magical eye swiveling onto me and fixing me with an unblinking stare. "If you'd rather learn the hard way - when someone's putting it on you so they can control you completely - fine by me. You're excused. Off you go."

He pointed a gnarled finger towards the door and my eyebrow remained raised.

"Who said I wanted to leave? I think it's a good idea," I told him. Moody raised a simple eyebrow at me before nodding.

Moody then began testing the curse on many people. The results comical, and certainly kinder than what it was normally used for. Dean Thomas hopped three times around the room, singing the national anthem. Lavender Brown imitated a squirrel. Neville performed a series of quite astonishing gymnastics he would certainly not have been capable of in his normal state. Not one of them seemed to be able to fight off the curse. Either none of them had the slightest bit of will or Moody was really strong. To be honest, I believed the second one more than the first one.

"You next," he said, gesturing for me to stand in front of him. I nodded before doing exactly that. Barely a second before, his wand was on me with the Imperius incantation free from his lips.

 _"Dance... Dance like you're in a ballroom,"_ an alluring voice said, but it was nowhere near as alluring as it needed to be control someone.

"No," I said easily, standing in place with my arms behind my back and an unaffected expression on my face. Moody's normal eye widened ever so slightly, and some of the students looked at me like I suddenly became Superman. Then again, it was kind of weird. I didn't even have to think about it, offer any type of resistance, or... anything. It just didn't work. I could feel the curse hit me, but it was almost like a gust of wind hit me.

"Impressive," Moody said before barking to the class, making most of them jump. "Look at that! He didn't have to think about it! He's got a will as tough as goblin steel! And that's what it takes to survive out there. Pure will and skill. Potter, you next."

I passed Harry and I nodded at him before leaning against a wall. I watched as Moody put the Imperius Curse on Harry. You could tell the curse took a hold on him when Harry's limbs visibly stiffened. But his limbs started to slowly relax as he looked like he was trying to get the use of his limbs back.

"NO!" Harry suddenly exclaimed. Harry held a hand to his head before shaking the cobwebs from his vision, so to speak.

"Well, I'm definitely satisfied with the performance of two people in this class. The rest of you need work," Moody growled.

* * *

"Jesus, my limbs feel weird," Harry said as we walked out of the class.

"That's the effects of the Imperius Curse. It'll wear off. If Moody does it again, soon you'll get used to the feeling," I told him.

"You think? You weren't affected by the Imperius Curse at all, so I'm not too sure you really know," Hermione asked, moving her limbs in the same awkward way that Harry was. Ron seemed to be having an even worse time.

"Well, I figure it's like any other sensation. If it's not deadly, you get used to it," I said.

"Yeah, the nutter," Ron said after checking to make sure Moody was not behind him. "No wonder they were glad to get shot of him at the Ministry. And when are we supposed to read up on resisting the Imperius Curse with everything else we've got to do?"

"You have to learn to make time. Or do it fast and right," I told him.

"Thank you. That really helps," Ron said sarcastically. I simply smirked at him.

"Not my fault I'm so good at resisting curses that try to get me to do things I don't want to do," I said.

"No, you're just that good. Now come on. We got work to do," Harry said, gesturing us to follow him back to the common room.

* * *

A/N: This was long than usual because I felt that what I had written at first was too short, so I decided to stack this on top of it. It's a plus that I can get to the Triwizard Tournament a little faster that way. Cause trust me. Once I start writing in that particular field, you're not gonna be able to keep me away from this story. lol.


	6. Chapter 6 - Familiar Faces

"What do you expect from these foreigners?" Harry asked me.

"Narcissism, bigotry, and a possible combination of the two. With only a few good eggs out of the bunch. This is just me going off worst case scenario," I said.

"And best case scenario?" Hermione questioned.

"They're all as pleasant as a meadow of roses," I said dryly, making the three teenagers on my sides snort.

"It's nearly six," Ron said, checking his watch and then staring down the drive that led to the front gates. "How d'you reckon they're coming? The train?"

"I doubt it," Hermione said.

"It's more than likely they have something that'll carry all of the delegations at once. I don't think it would be likely that they would come separately. Would be too much trouble. Then there's the fact that magical transportation doesn't work for Hogwarts, so they would have to arrive land or sea. By boat or by a giant flying tent or something of the sort," I explained, thinking aloud.

"Why do I have the feeling you're right on the money as always?" Harry questioned. I simply smirked while watching the skies.

And then we waited. The weather grew colder, but of course my wear made me not really noticed apart from my exposed face. And even that was only slightly. If what Mr. Weasley said was correct, they were going to make quite the entrance. But again, the most likely places were by land or sea.

Then, with a sharp eye, I noticed a presence very slowly making its way over to us. It looked to be big, which confirmed my suspicion about them having to arrive by land or sea in something that could hold them all. I couldn't really tell from this distance, and even my AS couldn't detect it from this distance. I could wait. I wasn't _that_ curious.

"I see them," I said to the three teenagers next to me right as Dumbledore spoke up.

"Aha! Unless I am very much mistaken, the delegation from Beauxbatons approaches!" he exclaimed. The man had better sight than you could give him credit for.

"Where?" many students said eagerly, all looking in different directions.

"There!" a sixth year yelled, pointing over the forest.

"It's a dragon!" one of the first years shrieked, losing her head completely.

"Don't be stupid... it's a flying house!" Dennis Creevey said.

"He was the closest one," I said, finally distinguishing what was holding the students.

It was a carriage; powder blue and horse-drawn. It was a quarter of the size of my mansion, which was still pretty large. My house could shelter an army.

The majestic golden horses that were tethered to the carriage landed with a loud crash, shortly followed by the carriage itself. A coat of arms, two crossed golden wands emitting stars was on the door of the carriage. It was still for a few seconds until the door opened.

A boy in pale blue robes jumped down from the carriage, bent forward, fumbled for a moment with something on the carriage floor, and unfolded a set of golden steps. He then sprang back respectfully.

A woman, well around Hagrid's height, but a bit taller, stepped out with a shining, black heeled shoe. Standing around the crowd, she seemed even more gigantic in contrast to the rest of the crowd that was around her. I was the tallest one here, and even I only came up to about half her height. Probably a little shorter than that.

Dumbledore started to clap; all of us following his lead, broke into applause too, many of them standing on tiptoe, to better to look at this woman.

Her face relaxed into a gracious smile and she walked forward toward Dumbledore, extending a glittering hand. Dumbledore, though tall himself, had barely to bend to kiss it.

"My dear Madame Maxime," he said. "Welcome to Hogwarts."

"Dumbly-dort," Madame Maxime said in a deep voice. "I 'ope I find you well?"

"In excellent form, I thank you," Dumbledore said.

"My pupils," Madame Maxime said, waving one of her enormous hands carelessly behind her.

I turned my head and saw that about a dozen boys and girls alike came out of the carriage, shivering from the cold. Looks like they weren't expecting it to be as cold as it is, considering they were only wearing silk and no cloaks. Most of them were looking at the castle with an apprehensive look. I frowned. Maybe I had that bigotry part right.

Then my attention was taken away from the conversation Dumbledore was having with Madame Maxime by a flash of shiny silvery-blonde hair. The sight itself intrigued before I decided to crane my neck to get a better look. I caught a pair of blue eyes that were nearly completely hidden by what looked like a scarf of some sorts, but that's about all I could tell with all of the students around her. She was way in the back. Was she trying to hide?

Then when I looked around, I came across some faces that I recognized. The French students that were in the forest when the Death Eaters were attacking were here. We knew they were from Beauxbatons when we saw them, but we didn't think about seeing them in this tournament.

One of them noticed my scanning of the Beauxbatons crowd and she tilted her head before a look of understanding came to her face. She nudged her friend and pointed to me. I simply smiled and gave a polite nod before turning back to focus on their Headmistress. Though my sensitive ears did pick up on a little whisper on their end. But there was too much hushed whispering on all sides for me to distinguish it.

"Come," Madame Maxime said imperiously to her students, and the Hogwarts crowd parted to allow her and her students to pass up the stone steps. My eyes followed the crowd to catch sight of the girl with the silvery blonde hair, but she moved up to move into the center of her fellow classmates. Yup. Definitely trying to hide.

"They just got here. Are you seriously starting now?" Harry questioned with a smirk.

"I recognized a few of those girls. They were the ones we told about the Death Eaters while we were in the forest," I told him.

"They're here? What are the odds that they would've shown up for the tournament?" Hermione asked.

"It definitely shows they're competent magic wise, that's for sure. That's why there are only so few students," I told her.

"Who do you reckon you'll have one giving you Valentines about how you're-"

"You finish that sentence Ron, and you won't have teeth to eat at the feast with," I warned him, knowing he was referring to the time in second year with all of those Valentine cards. God, they will never let me live that down. At the very least, I got him to shut up. But he was still grinning.

"How big d'you reckon Durmstrang's horses are going to be?" Seamus Finnegan said, leaning around Lavender and Parvati to address us.

"It's more than likely they aren't coming by the same way," I told him.

"How do you think they're coming then?" Seamus asked me.

"They have to come in by land or sea. I don't see them arriving in a carriage that looks like something out of princess stories, so I'm gonna say by sea," I said.

"Knowing you, you're probably right," Seamus said before turning away.

After a few moments, my ears perked up. A weird type of noise was sounding through the air, the source of it originating at the lake. Then it sounded like a vacuum cleaner was suddenly shoved in the lake, draining as much water as it could before a mast the size of the Washington Monument came out of the lake. Perhaps a little bigger.

At a slow pace, a ship rose out of the water. It had a strangely skeletal look about it, as though it were a resurrected wreck, and the dim, misty lights shimmering at its portholes looked like ghostly eyes. Then an anchor was thrown down into the depths with a 'plunk' sound and a plank was lowered onto shore.

All of the Durmstrang students seemed to be wearing a type of thick fur; no doubt due to the cold conditions that they were normally used to living in. For them, this weather would probably be hot. Especially in those furs.

A man, hair as silver as the furs he was wearing was leading his students up to the castle. His goatee finished with a small curl, but it didn't do much to hide how weak his chin was. My interest then turned to the students before I saw a sight that interested me very much.

"Ron?" I asked.

"Yeah?" he asked.

"Don't freak out," I told him.

"Why?" he asked me, looking confused.

"Look over there," I said, pointing my finger into the crowd. Ron squinted his eyes to get a better look at where I was pointing at before he seemed to have bit his tongue down hard to avoid yelling while moving around erratically to contain his excitement.

"Victor Krum?" Harry questioned, his eyes wide at the sight of the Quidditch player being here.

"The one and only, it seems," I said evenly.

"I don't believe it!" Ron said, in a stunned voice, as the Hogwarts students filed back up the steps behind the party from Durmstrang. "Krum, Harry! Viktor Krum!"

"For heaven's sake, Ron, he's only a Quidditch player," Hermione said in an exasperated tone.

"Only a Quidditch player?" Ron said, looking at her as though he couldn't believe his ears. "Hermione - he's one of the best Seekers in the world! I had no idea he was still at school!"

"Looks like wizards do things different than Muggles when it comes to recruiting. That, or they just made an exception because of how good Krum is," I said, knowing that it was probably the second one. Krum was a superb player in general, much less for his age. Teams would definitely want him on their time, so they're bound to have pulled some favors that. Bulgaria was lucky to have a player as good as this.

I was somewhat exasperated by all the people bounding up and down and chattering like a pack of chipmunks once they caught sight of Krum. It was to be expected, but that doesn't make me be any less irritated to have to hear it and witness it.

Ron took care to sit on the side facing the doorway, because Krum and his fellow Durmstrang students were still gathered around it, apparently unsure about where they should sit. The students from Beauxbatons had chosen seats at the Ravenclaw table. They were looking around the Great Hall with glum expressions on their faces. Three of them were still clutching scarves and shawls around their heads. I simply rolled my eyes at their attitudes.

"It's not that cold," Hermione said defensively. "Why didn't they bring cloaks?"

"One, France is actually considerably warm as of now days, so they're not used to this. Two, they probably didn't expect it to be as cold as it was," I told her.

"Good point," Hermione said. I smiled. She was getting better learning to admit when someone had a point over her. I was was the perfect person for that.

"Over here! Come and sit over here!" Ron hissed. "Over here! Hermione, budge up, make a space -"

"What?"

"Too late," said Ron bitterly.

Viktor Krum and his fellow Durmstrang students had settled themselves at the Slytherin table. I could see Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle looking very smug about this. As he watched, Malfoy bent forward to speak to Krum. Of course the little snake would try to befriend a Quidditch star. If Krum had sense, he wouldn't bother with Malfoy after a conversation with him.

"Yeah, that's right, smarm up to him, Malfoy," Ron said scathingly. "I bet Krum can see right through him, though... bet he gets people fawning over him all the time... Where d'you reckon they're going to sleep? We could offer him a space in our dormitory, Harry... I wouldn't mind giving him my bed, I could kip on a camp bed."

Hermione snorted and I did the same while Harry shook his head in disbelief. But Ron didn't seem to notice. His attention was completely on Krum.

"They look a lot happier than the Beauxbatons lot," Harry said. The Durmstrang students were pulling off their heavy furs and looking up at the starry black ceiling with expressions of interest; a couple of them were picking up the golden plates and goblets and examining them, apparently impressed. Beauxbatons seemed less than satisfied, much less impressed.

Up at the staff table, Filch, the caretaker, was adding chairs. He was wearing his moldy old tailcoat in honor of the occasion. This made me raise an eyebrow. Four chairs with two extra guests?

"More people must be coming," I said aloud.

"Yeah, must be," Harry said.

"Eh?" Ron said vaguely. He was still staring avidly at Krum. I pointed at him while looking at Harry and his response was to raise a hand as if saying, "Yes, we know he's a dingus."

When their headmistress appeared, the pupils from Beauxbatons leapt to their feet. A few of the Hogwarts students laughed, but I glared at them to silence them real quick. I was well aware of some French traditions. It was a common thing to stand up to respect your elders just like a judge in court. Granted, not as quickly, but the gesture was not lost on me.

"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen, ghosts and - most particularly - guests," said Dumbledore, beaming around at the foreign students. "I have great pleasure in welcoming you all to Hogwarts. I hope and trust that your stay here will be both comfortable and enjoyable."

One of the Beauxbatons girls still clutching a muffler around her head gave what was unmistakably a derisive laugh.

"Ugh. Can't stand ungrateful people," I said with a disgusted tone. I saw that the girl turned to look at me and I simply gave her an icy look before turning back to the front.

"I was gonna tell her that no one was making her stay, but your way works even better," Hermione said.

"So it seems," I said, turning back to the front to look at Dumbledore.

"The tournament will be officially opened at the end of the feast," Dumbledore said. "I now invite you all to eat, drink, and make yourselves at home!" The plates immediately filled before he turned to engage Karkaroff in conversation. To my pleasure, I saw that some of these were French. When you had a French family, you learned to love food like this. Maman sure knew how to cook it too.

"What's that?" Ron asked, pointing to the Bouillabaisse that was next to the streak and kidney pie.

"Ooh, Bouillabaisse," I said, my smile growing.

"Bless you," Ron told me. I rolled my eyes.

"No, Bouillabaisse is a French dish. I love it. Maman sure knew how to make some damn good Bouillabaisse too. Now do they have..." I nearly squealed, but I settled for a muffled shout. "Mussels a la Mariniere. Hell. Yes." I then began piling my plate with the food.

"Do you like French food that much?" Hermione asked.

"You don't?" I questioned.

"I've had it before, but I don't like it as much as you do it seems," Hermione said. I shook my head.

"You have to meet Maman then. She makes food that'll blow you out of the water," I said, my fingers closed together because I was speaking of someone well versed in the art of French food.

"Just how French did they turn you?" Harry questioned.

"Enough," I said with a grin, finishing my plate with the French food I wanted.

Hagrid sidled into the Hall through a door behind the staff table twenty minutes after the start of the feast. He slid into his seat at the end and waved at us with a heavily bandaged hand.

"Skrewts doing all right, Hagrid?" Harry called.

"Thrivin'," Hagrid called back happily.

"Yeah, I'll just bet they are," said Ron quietly. "Looks like they've finally found a food they like, doesn't it? Hagrid's fingers." I couldn't hold back a snort at that idea.

"Excuse me, are you wanting ze bouillabaisse?"

It was the girl from Beauxbatons who had laughed during Dumbledore's speech, her muffler removed. It was the girl that I noticed with the silvery blond hair. She was quite stunning to say the least, but that didn't stop my gaze from turning icy at the sight of her considering her attitude. But then again, she did ask politely.

"I assume none of you want any of it?" I asked the three of them. Hermione and Harry shook their heads while Ron was staring, his face purple and his mouth letting out a gurgling noise. I pinched the bridge of my nose.

"Jesus Christ Ron. You're gonna catch flies," I said, grabbing the bouillabaisse and handing it to her. "Here."

"You 'ave finished wiz it?" she questioned. I gave her a curt nod.

"Yeah," Ron said breathlessly. "Yeah, it was excellent." Sometimes, I wondered about this boy. Granted, this did seem a bit more... extreme than usual. Even for Ron.

"She's a Veela!" he said hoarsely to Harry once the girl went back to the Ravenclaw table. That could've been it. At the very least, part Veela. She would've turned just about every male head in the Hall if she was full Veela.

"Of course she isn't!" Hermione said tartly. "I don't see anyone else gaping at her like an idiot!"

"You're wrong about that," I said, gesturing a thumb before taking a bite of bouillabaisse. Many of the boys at the tables the girl passed by still had their heads craned to stare at the girl. I know Veela had some type of allure, but hell, I didn't even feel it. I have the feeling I would like it to stay that way.

"I'm telling you, that's not a normal girl!" Ron said, leaning sideways so he could keep a clear view of her. "They don't make them like that at Hogwarts!"

"They make em ok at Hogwarts," Harry said. His eye was on his food, but then I could see one of his eyes dart towards Hermione. I couldn't stop the grin on my face as I continued to eat.

 _"Oh, I can tell you got it bad for her kid,"_ I thought happily before continuing to eat.

"When you've put your eyes back in Ronald," Hermione said briskly, "you'll be able to see who's just arrived."

She was pointing up at the staff table. The two remaining empty seats had just been filled. Ludo Bagman was now sitting on Professor Karkaroff's other side, while Mr. Crouch, Percy's boss, was next to Madame Maxime.

"So that's what the other two seats were for," I said.

"What are they doing here?" Harry asked in surprise.

"They organized the Triwizard Tournament, didn't they?" Hermione said. "I suppose they wanted to be here to see it start."

As the second round of desserts came, I couldn't resist squealing. Like, actually squealing as if I was an excited little schoolgirl. In a way, I kinda was. Chocolate Mousse was to DIE for. Granted, the house elves didn't make it quite as good as Maman, but they still did excellently. It still needed that little French touch.

"Did you just-"

"Yes I did. And I don't care who hears. I love Chocolate Mousse. American made Mousse, to be honest, is not that good compared to this," I said, as I took a bite.

The French girl did in fact come back over here for the blancmange, and I gladly handed it to her before happily going make to my Mousse. I happily did this while kicking Ron in his shins to get him to come back to his senses. I gotta go for Maman's cooking sometime over vacation. I was able to go without for a bit, but now I have to get some. I just can't resist.

Once the golden plates had been wiped clean, Dumbledore stood up again. A pleasant sort of tension seemed to fill the Hall now. The euphoria of the French food was able to calm down enough to where I could actually feel the excitement of what was about to come next.

"The moment has come," Dumbledore said, smiling around at the sea of upturned faces. "The Triwizard Tournament is about to start. I would like to say a few words of explanation before we bring in the casket -"

"The what?" Harry muttered while Ron shrugged in response. I elbowed the both of them as I was actually interested in listening.

"- just to clarify the procedure that we will be following this year. But first, let me introduce, for those who do not know them, Mr. Bartemius Crouch, Head of the Department of International Magical Cooperation" - there was a smattering of polite applause - "and Mr. Ludo Bagman, Head of the Department of Magical Games and Sports."

There was a much louder round of applause for Bagman than for Crouch, perhaps because of his fame as a Beater, or simply because he looked so much more likable. He acknowledged it with a jovial wave of his hand. Crouch seemed to take his applause as if it never happened.

"Mr. Bagman and Mr. Crouch have worked tirelessly over the last few months on the arrangements for the Triwizard Tournament," Dumbledore continued, "and they will be joining myself, Professor Karkaroff, and Madame Maxime on the panel that will judge the champions' efforts."

At the mention of the word "champions," the attentiveness of the listening students seemed to sharpen. Perhaps Dumbledore had noticed their sudden stillness, for he smiled as he said, "The casket, then, if you please, Mr. Filch."

Filch then came up from a far corner in the hall, carrying a chest with jewels on it that looked about as old as the Holy Grail.

"The instructions for the tasks the champions will face this year have already been examined by Mr. Crouch and Mr. Bagman," Dumbledore said as Filch placed the chest carefully on the table before him, "and they have made the necessary arrangements for each challenge. There will be three tasks, spaced throughout the school year, and they will test the champions in many different ways.. their magical prowess - their daring - their powers of deduction - and, of course, their ability to cope with danger."

"After these past few years, no one knows that better than us, right?" I said with a grin in Harry's direction. He grinned wide as well Ron and Hermione.

"As you know, three champions compete in the tournament," Dumbledore went on calmly, "one from each of the participating schools. They will be marked on how well they perform each of the Tournament tasks and the champion with the highest total after task three will win the Triwizard Cup. The champions will be chosen by an impartial selector: the Goblet of Fire."

Dumbledore now took out his wand and tapped three times upon the top of the casket. The lid creaked slowly open. Dumbledore reached inside it and pulled out a large, roughly sewn wooden cup that was filled to the brim with dancing blue-white flames. This is the impartial selector? Interesting.

Dumbledore closed the casket and placed the goblet carefully on top of it, where it would be clearly visible to everyone in the Hall.

"Anybody wishing to submit themselves as champion must write their name and school clearly upon a slip of parchment and drop it into the goblet," Dumbledore said. "Aspiring champions have twenty-four hours in which to put their names forward. Tomorrow night, Halloween, the goblet will return the names of the three it has judged most worthy to represent their schools. The goblet will be placed in the entrance hall tonight, where it will be freely accessible to all those wishing to compete.

"To ensure that no underage student yields to temptation," Dumbledore said. "I will be drawing an Age Line around the Goblet of Fire once it has been placed in the entrance hall. Nobody under the age of seventeen will be able to cross this line.

"Finally, I wish to impress upon any of you wishing to compete that this tournament is not to be entered into lightly. Once a champion has been selected by the Goblet of Fire, he or she is obliged to see the tournament through to the end. The placing of your name in the goblet constitutes a binding, magical contract. There can be no change of heart once you have become a champion. Please be very sure, therefore, that you are wholeheartedly prepared to play before you drop your name into the goblet. Now, I think it is time for bed. Good night to you all."

"An Age Line!" Fred said, his eyes glinting, as they all made their way across the Hall to the doors into the entrance hall. "Well, that should be fooled by an Aging Potion, shouldn't it? And once your name's in that goblet, you're laughing - it can't tell whether you're seventeen or not!"

"But I don't think anyone under seventeen will stand a chance," Hermione said, "we just haven't learned enough..." I tuned them out because I wasn't nowhere near as concerned about getting past the Line as these people.

"What'd you think? You reckon we won't have to risk our lives this year?" Harry asked.

"It's unlikely, but I do hope that we don't have to. Hopefully, none of the seventeen year old Slytherins are assholes enough to..." I cut myself off. I got immediately distracted by the looks I got from the Durmstrang students behind us as we were walking. Some of them were looking at me up and down as if sizing me up. Others... well, they had Malfoy's sneer on their faces. Guess Slytherins aren't the only ones who didn't like Muggles. I simply stared back at them with a sneer of my own before turning back to the front.

"Let em pass. I wanna look each of these assholes in the eye," I said, my tone cold. Most people didn't argue with me when I used that tone. This was one of those cases. So indeed me and Harry turned to let the Durmstrang denizens pass.

And then Karkaroff froze. He turned his head back to Harry and stared at him as though he couldn't believe his eyes. Behind their headmaster, the students from Durmstrang came to a halt too. Karkaroff's eyes moved slowly up Harry's face and fixed upon his scar.

"Yup, Harry Potter. Right here. You wanna stare or hold up the people coming behind us?" I said, gesturing to the upcoming students to prove my point.

Karkaroff turned to me and his stare turned even with his eyes becoming cold. I gave him a hard stare of my own while my posture was unmoving and strong. Looks like news of the a Muggle student reached them. Looks like the geniuses figured out who it was. The only person not wearing robes.

"I repeat, do you want hold these nice students up?" I said with a smile as fake as Karkaroff's smile when he was looking at Hogwarts. I did nothing to hide the hard look in my eyes.

"He's got a point Karkaroff. You don't want to hold everyone up, do you?" Moody said, coming up from behind us. The color drained from Karkaroff's face once he saw Moody. The corners of my lips turned upward by the slightest at this sight.

"You!" he said, staring at Moody as though unsure he was really seeing him.

"Me," Moody said grimly. "And unless you've got anything to say to Potter or Morgan, Karkaroff, you might want to move. Now."

Without another word, Professor Karkaroff swept his students away with him. Moody watched him until he was out of sight, his magical eye fixed upon his back, a look of intense dislike upon his mutilated face.

"Unpleasant little bastard, isn't he?" I said as Karkaroff walked off, making sure his students heard it as they walked off. They didn't turn around, but their shoulders did bristle.

"That's putting it lightly Morgan," Moody said before clanking out of the Hall. We followed his example and walked out ourselves. So it seemed like I was not going to have a single pleasant experience with any of the Durmstrang students here. At least for right now.

* * *

A/N: Imma be getting updates out a lot faster now that I've decreased my work load by putting some stories on hiatus. Trust me, it's a lot easier.


	7. Chapter 7 - Champion Mishaps

"The idea of a troll like Warrington becoming Hogwarts Champion would sicken me. I'd rather compete than him. At least I have viable intelligence," I said, piling food onto my plate. Again, they had kept up with the foreign food for our visitors, so I was biting into a delicious baguette.

"Me too. And all the Hufflepuffs are talking about Diggory, but I thought he wouldn't have wanted to risk his good looks," Seamus said.

"Come off Diggory, will ya? He's a good dude," I said. Seamus simply sighed and shook his head. I rolled my eyes before I heard loud cheering. "Hold up."

"You hear that too?" Hermione asked, stopping in her movements.

People were cheering out in the entrance hall. We all swiveled around in their seats and saw Angelina Johnson coming into the Hall, grinning in an embarrassed sort of way.

"Well, I've done it! I've just put my name in!" she said, coming over to us and sitting down.

"Excellent job. I do hope you get it then. Definitely rather have you or Diggory over Warrington," I said, looking over at the Slytherin table with disgusted scrutiny.

"Well, I'm glad someone from Gryffindor's entering," Hermione said. "I really hope you get it, Angelina!"

"Thanks, Hermione," Angelina said, smiling at her.

"Yeah, better you than Pretty-Boy Diggory," Seamus said, causing several Hufflepuffs passing their table to scowl heavily at him. I only shook my head at his behavior as I finished my breakfast.

"What're we going to do today, then?" Ron asked us when we had finished breakfast and were leaving the Great Hall. I took the longest because, again, French food was my obsession. Or rather the closest thing to it.

"We haven't been down to visit Hagrid yet," Harry suggested.

"That sounds good. Then I can get to work on some more ideas on my jet. I don't feel like waiting any longer," I said.

"Where'd you put it? I thought you were going to make some adjustments to the engine, so..."

"I did. I left it near the lake close to the Durmstrang ship," I said.

"Why near there?" Hermione asked.

"So if anyone tries to attack my jet, it'll be on people that I don't necessarily like. There's a small chance of that happening to anyone from Beauxbatons, but hey, I do have a note on it saying, 'Do not touch. Under repairs.' Under repairs, but the defense system is still active," I said with a wry smirk.

"What are the threats of messing with it?" Harry asked.

"Upon harmful physical contact, electrocution until they're unconscious. From range, it automatically shoots out these things," I said, summoning a suppression round to my hand. "Riot suppression bullets. Under normal circumstances, they're real bullets, but these aren't normal circumstances. But let's just say that when you have these rounds fired at your head, it'll feel like you just got punched by an angry gorilla."

"Ouch," Hermione said evenly.

"Just every defense thing you have hurts at the very least, doesn't it?" Ron asked.

"It wouldn't make a point if it wasn't," I said evenly.

"I've just realized - I haven't asked Hagrid to join S.P.E.W. yet!" she said brightly in a sudden realization. "Wait for me, will you, while I nip upstairs and get the badges?" She didn't give anyone a chance to respond before she went back up towards the Tower.

"What is it with her?" Ron said, exasperated.

"She wants to build on her little cause," I said in an obvious tone of voice.

"Hey, Ron," Harry said suddenly. But I could hear the hidden smirk in his tone. "It's your friend..."

The students from Beauxbatons were coming through the front doors from the grounds, among them, the veela-girl. Those gathered around the Goblet of Fire stood back to let them pass, watching eagerly. I managed to catch sight of one of the girls that we met in the forest again. She looked at me and flashed another grin before giving off a wave that looked hesitant. I simply waved back with a polite smile of my own. Were we just going to spend time waving and smiling at each other the entire time she was here?

Then one of the French girls nudged her to move forward while briefly speaking to her. I read, "What are you doing? Who are you waving at?" on her lips. Then she pointed at me. Upon the turn around of her friend, I frowned. It was that supposed veela-girl if Ron was right. Looks and allure didn't make a person in my book, so I just simply gave her a curt nod. Then she dragged her friend to focus on putting her name in the Goblet.

"You got plans with her?" Harry asked.

"We'll have to speak at one point, but as of now, no. Not yet," I said, keeping my eye on the Beauxbatons students.

"What d'you reckon'll happen to the ones who aren't chosen?" Ron muttered. "Reckon they'll go back to school, or hang around to watch the tournament?"

"Dunno," Harry said. "Hang around, I suppose... Madame Maxime's staying to judge, isn't she?"

"It's more than likely they're going to stay. Support their students and all of that," I said as they moved out onto the grounds.

"Where are they all sleeping then?" Ron asked.

"More than likely in that carriage of theirs. It _is_ big enough for that," I said, a rattling sound behind me alerting me to the fact that Hermione had come back with those blasted S.P.E.W badges.

"Oh good, hurry up," Ron said, jumping down the stone steps while keeping his eyes on the back of the veela-girl, who was now halfway across the lawn with Madame Maxime. I sighed before jumping down to follow him, though far more calm and leveled. I grabbed my left arm and pulled it to stretch it out, giving off a satisfied grunt when something popped.

"Much better. Morning stiffness is something I honestly can't stand," I said, heading down to the grounds. "You reckon the skrewts have gotten bigger?"

"More than likely they're big enough to destroy us all, but fingers crossed that they aren't," Harry said in a dry tone, making me smirk.

"You're starting to sound like Robert," Hermione told him.

"And that's a bad thing?" we said at the same time before looking at each other, grinning, and pointing finger pistols at each other. Then we started laughing before putting hands around our shoulders. Harry had gotten pretty tall, so he actually was tall enough to reach my shoulders at the very least.

Then I felt eyes on me as we made to hop out of the window that lead to a lower hill where Hagrid's hut was at. I looked back to see that the veela-girl was staring at us as we were moving. I gave her a curious look before turning to the others for a second.

"Two seconds," I said before moving out of the window to move over to talk to her. Then I noticed her Headmistress was gesturing for her to come over here, so I addressed her politely.

 _"Deux secondes Veuillez madame. Cela ne prendra qu'une seconde,"_ I told her. She seemed somewhat shocked that I even knew French, but I'm pretty sure that's what made all the difference and she nodded. Then I turned to the French girl with my arms crossed, with a waiting look on my face.

 _"Quelle?"_ she asked me.

"Préférez-vous l'anglais ou le français?" I asked.

"I prefer French, but Eenglish is not my strong point," she said.

"So it seems," I said idly. "Any reason why you're staring at us as we're heading out?"

"Is zere a reason you are following us? If this is about Aurore..."

"We weren't following you. That's our reason for heading out of a window leading the the hut down below rather than directly following you. If I wanted to follow you, you wouldn't see me," I said evenly. She simply raised an eyebrow.

"Is zat a brag?" she asked.

"It's a promise," I said. Her eyes narrowed somewhat. I think it was my tone was what got her. It was even and entirely honest.

"Hmm. So eet seems," she said before looking at me up and down with a more analyzing look. "I get ze feeling you do not particularly like me."

"You are correct in that assumption," I said, my arms still crossed as I stood there. "You don't exactly make a nice first impression."

"We 'ave never eeven talked," she told me.

"Beginning feast. Twelve AM when you first arrived here. You see, I don't quite think the best of a person when they laugh at a man who's offering his school and hospitality to you. That's kind of funny," I said with a laugh, but there was no humor in it. It matched my icy eyes like wood with fire. "So excuse me if I tend to judge a person on that."

"Ze sarcasm is not lost on me," she said.

"I'd be disappointed if it did," I said evenly.

"You seem very cross," she said.

"I'm pleasant to the people who deserve it. You have yet to have proven that you seem anything but ungrateful, so why should I change my attitude?" I asked. She looked half angry, but then a quick thought flashed across her face which caused her to calm down. Which thought, I didn't know. I wasn't a mind reader. I could only read body language.

"Fair eenough. Zen shall we start with an introduction first," she said, holding out a gentle hand. "Fleur Delacour." I looked at the hand before shaking it.

"Robert Morgan," I said evenly before her eyes darted up to look at me quickly.

"But you are a..."

"Muggle?" I questioned with a smirk before heading towards the window before looking back. "I have ways madame. Because to be quite honest, there is no one out there like me." Then I walked down towards Hagrid's hut. I was surprised that the others were already heading out.

"I thought you would be there longer?" I questioned.

"Well, Hagrid had plans," Harry said.

"Plans?" I questioned.

"With Madame Maxime," Ron said with a smirk. I raised a hand.

"I'm just gonna stop you right there. I don't need to hear anymore," I said, shaking my head as I went back up towards the castle. I could hear Ron laugh as we went further up towards the castle. The images of those two... nope. Let me stop right there before I puke.

* * *

I stretched with a somewhat goofy smile on my face as the food satisfied me quite well. I was enjoying the influx of French stuff since our foreign guests had arrived.

"Well, the goblet is almost ready to make its decision," Dumbledore said. "I estimate that it requires one more minute. Now, when the champions' names are called, I would ask them please to come up to the top of the Hall, walk along the staff table, and go through into the next chamber -" He indicated the door behind the staff table - "where they will be receiving their first instructions."

He took out his wand and gave a great sweeping wave with it; at once, all the candles except those inside the carved pumpkins were extinguished, plunging them into a state of semi-darkness. The Goblet of Fire now shone more brightly than anything in the whole Hall. I myself, could feel an intense suspense in the Hall as we all just sat here, waiting for the Goblet to make its decision.

"Any second," Lee Jordan whispered, two seats away from Harry.

The flames inside the goblet turned suddenly red and as one, the entire Hall suddenly sat up straight while all of their attention was focused on the Goblet. Then, just as suddenly, a piece of paper flew out of the Goblet, causing the whole room to gasp.

Dumbledore caught the piece of parchment and held it at arm's length, so that he could read it by the light of the flames, which had turned back to blue-white.

"The champion for Durmstrang," he read, in a strong, clear voice, "will be Viktor Krum."

"No surprises there!" Ron yelled as a storm of applause and cheering swept the Hall. I was clapping fairly hard as well. Mostly because I wanted to see if he was as good with a wand and thinking as he was on a broom. If he was, he would be hard pressed to beat.

"Bravo, Viktor!" Karkaroff boomed, so loudly that everyone could hear him, even over all the applause. "Knew you had it in you!"

I rolled my eyes. No surprises that he wanted Krum to be chosen. He was grooming him ever since he got here.

The clapping and chatting died down. Now everyone's attention was focused again on the goblet, which, seconds later, turned red once more. A second piece of parchment shot out of it, propelled by the flames.

"The champion for Beauxbatons," Dumbledore said, "is Fleur Delacour!" This caught my attention.

I turned my gaze over to the woman in question before raising an eyebrow. Now in this case, it would be whether she could handle a wand as well as her looks. Again, would be hard pressed if that were the case.

"Oh look. They're all disappointed," Hermione said over the noise, nodding toward the remainder of the Beauxbatons party. "Disappointed" was a bit of an understatement. Two of the girls who had not been selected had dissolved into tears and were sobbing with their heads on their arms. The girl that I "knew" seemed to have taken it rather easily considering it was her best friend who had gotten chosen.

But now the silence was even more tense than it was before. The Hogwarts Champion was next, and that was who most of the people in the Hall were waiting for. Cedric or Angelina... come on...

And the Goblet of Fire turned red once more; sparks showered out of it; the tongue of flame shot high into the air, and from its tip Dumbledore pulled the third piece of parchment.

"The Hogwarts champion," he called, "is Cedric Diggory!"

"Yes!" I exclaimed louder than Ron yelled his no. But even then, my exclamation barely got over the cheers from the Hufflepuff table. I was clapping loudly as well as Harry and Hermione, before we were shortly followed by a few others from our table. All in all, Cedric was definitely far from a bad pick for Hogwarts Champion. Couldn't wait to see how he would do.

"Excellent!" Dumbledore called happily as at last the tumult died down. "Well, we now have our three champions. I am sure I can count upon all of you, including the remaining students from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang to give your champions every ounce of support you can muster. By cheering your champion on, you will contribute in a very real -"

But Dumbledore suddenly stopped speaking, and it was apparent to everybody what had distracted him. And my heart stopped for a moment.

The fire in the goblet had just turned red again. Sparks were flying out of it. A long flame shot suddenly into the air, and borne upon it was another piece of parchment.

Automatically, it seemed, Dumbledore reached out a long hand and grabbed the paper. He held it out and stared at the name written upon it. There was a long pause, during which Dumbledore stared at the slip in his hands, and everyone in the room stared at him.

 _"Don't you dare... don't you dare say it..."_ I thought furiously. Not another year...

"Harry Potter." I immediately rose to my feet in outrage. The look on my face was angry to say the very least. I sure as hell was not going to going to take this lying down. I was going to find a way to get him out of this tournament if I could. This couldn't be right. Another year for him without rest! What would it take to get _one_ peaceful year?! ONE!

But before I could even find my voice to come up with an exclamation, the Goblet did something that NONE of us had expected. It shot out another piece of paper. Now this quelled my anger to the point where I was stunned. I swear to God, if it was Hermione or Ron, I was going to have to murder some people. This was ridiculous!

The whole seemed to have gone still with shock. Dumbledore seemed to be so shocked that he actually let the paper fall to the ground. He seemed to wondering if the Goblet was playing jokes with him. Then he seemed to realize that the Goblet was too powerful of a magical object to do such a thing, so he picked the paper up. He straightened up his glasses, cleared his throat yet again, before calling...

"Robert Morgan."

"WHAT?!" I screamed so loud, I probably broke some mirrors in the castle. All eyes went to me, but I didn't care. I just stood there with a slack jawed look that made me look like Goyle with my hands out at my sides. Me?! ME?! Why?! Not only was I surprised, I was beyond pissed. So I settled for one thing I could do. Loudly and forcefully make them take me and Harry out of this tournament. This was NOT going to happen if I had a say in it. Then I remembered when I said I'd rather compete than Warrington. I didn't think it would actually happen.

"Fuck. My. Life," I said with a groan as me and Harry made our way to the front of the table. The whole Hall was silent and about as shocked as we were. Another year at Hogwarts, right?

* * *

A/N: Little twist I added. Trust me, I had this idea planned for a while, and I was going to go through with it. But we'll save the details of what will happen until next chapter.


	8. Chapter 8 - Our Luck in a Nutshell

"How in the hell did this even happen?" Harry asked me with heat in his tone.

"I don't know, but if I find the person who did this, I'm going to beat them within an inch of their lives. This was our one chance to finally get a relaxing year, and because of this, that's not going to happen! Our luck, huh?" I said in a moody tone.

"Our luck," Harry said in a tone just as moody. Then we walked into the area where the other champions were. Krum, hunched-up and brooding, was leaning against the mantelpiece, slightly apart from the other two. Cedric was standing with his hands behind his back, staring into the fire. Fleur Delacour looked around when we walked through the door, throwing back her silvery hair.

"What is it?" she said. "Do zey want us back in ze Hall?"

"I wish," I said with a hollow tone. She looked at me in a confused fashion right as there was a sound of scurrying feet belonging to Ludo Bagman. He tried to put his hands on our shoulders to lead us forward, but we both wrenched out of his grip.

"Forgive me. I'm getting rather excited. It's very extraordinary! Gentlemen... lady," Bagman said before gesturing to us. "May I introduce the fourth and fifth Triwizard Champions?"

Krum's face immediately darkened as he looked at us while straightening up. Cedric looked back and forth between us with a look of absolute shock on his face. I couldn't blame him.

"If we can help it, there will be only three again," Harry said with a tone as surly as Krum's average expression. Fleur looked back at me before looking back at Bagman.

"Wait, zis is no joke?" she questioned, her expression more serious now.

"Well... it is amazing," Bagman said, rubbing his chin and smiling at the both of us. "But, as you know, the age restriction was only imposed this year as an extra safety measure in Mr. Potter's case. And as both of their names came out of the goblet... I mean, I don't think there can be any ducking out at this stage... It's down in the rules, you're obliged... You both will just-"

The door opening again cut Bagman off, in coming Dumbledore, Mr. Crouch, Karkaroff, Madame Maxime, and Professor McGonagall and Snape. The noise of hundreds of students came in through the door before it snapped shut, muting the sounds.

"Madame Maxime!" Fleur immediately said, going over to her Headmistress. "Zey are saying zat zese two are to compete also!"

"It's not exactly good news for the both of us," I said with a bitter tone. Harry looked about as sour as I did.

"What is ze meaning of zis, Dumbly-dorr?" Madame Maxime said imperiously.

"I'd rather like to know that myself, Dumbledore," Professor Karkaroff said. He had a steely smile, but cold eyes. "Three Hogwarts champions? I don't remember anyone telling me the host school is allowed three champions - or did I mistake each school having three champions instead of there only being three champions?"

"C'est impossible," Madame Maxime said, her enormous hand resting upon Fleur's shoulder. "'Ogwarts cannot 'ave three champions. It is most unjust."

"We were under the impression that your Age Line would keep out younger contestants, Dumbledore," Karkaroff said, his steely smile still in place, though his eyes were colder than ever. "Otherwise, we would, of course, have brought along a wider selection of candidates from our own schools.

"And it did," I reminded him. He immediately turned his attention to me.

"Oh? Are you admitting you put both of your names in the Goblet?" Karkaroff asked. I closed the distance between me and him with one powerful stride. His eyes were cold and his smile had disappeared, but my eyes were lit with a type of angry fire. The look on my face was rather ugly as well.

"Don't suggest to me that I would put my ward in danger," I told him, my shoulders taut. I could feel several stares turn to me and Karkaroff looked at me up and down. "That's right. I'm Harry's Potter's ward. Have been for the past three years. Is there a problem?"

"Not a problem," Karkaroff said, his tone somewhat icy. But then his tone became more even. "That means you are fully within your rights to remove him from this tournament." I nodded. For once, we were in agreement. Miracles do happen.

"Actually, he cannot," Mr. Crouch suddenly said, making me snap my head to him.

"And why not?" I asked, my tone far colder than Karkaroff's eyes. There was a rather uncomfortable silence, but Crouch cleared his throat before speaking.

"Because in this tournament constitutes a binding magical contract once you are selected. Mr. Potter is fully within his rights to refuse being in the tournament, but not doing so would result in a loss of his magical abilities. He would be every bit as Muggle as you are," Mr. Crouch said.

His words immediately put a bad taste in my mouth. That was a part I must've missed when reading about the tournament.

"So I'm stuck in this tournament?" Harry asked, anger beginning to seep into his tone.

"If you wish to keep your magical abilities, yes," Crouch told him. Harry balled his hands into fists while moving to pace. The other three champions watched him the whole time. They seemed surprised to see him so angry.

"Well guess what? I don't have magical abilities," I suddenly said, my tone becoming even colder. "Harry may have to compete to keep his magic, but I do not have to do anything of the sort. You can count me out of this fucking tournament."

"That might be so," Crouch said. For the first time, his curt tone had a bit of awkwardness behind it. And I wasn't the only one whose attention was peaked by this.

"Might?" I emphasized.

"What ever do you mean Barty?" Bagman asked.

"There's a reference to soul magic. According to it, all souls have magical signatures. Even Muggle souls. When magical contracts are broken, the contract takes priority of the wizard or witch's magical core rather than their soul. But in this case..." Crouch trailed. I didn't need him to finish to figure out what he meant.

"So you're tell me..." I said slowly. "...that if I don't compete in this goddamned tournament, that I'll lose my soul?!" Not even the teachers seemed affected by my choice of language considering the circumstances.

"Surely zis can't be correct?" Fleur questioned.

"I'm afraid it just might be. There's no way to know for sure. There's never been a situation like this before. Whether or not you want to take the risk is up to you," Crouch said.

The reality of the situation set on my shoulders like a ton of bricks. I had a lot more to lose than my life if I didn't compete in this tournament. It would be like an instant Dementor's Kiss; I would just walk around as a soulless being. A fate worse than death.

"It's quite a thing to take in," Crouch said, his curt tone returning.

"Well, regardless of this unfortunate bit of circumstances..." Karkaroff interjected, not sounding very affected at all. Other than his distaste for the situation. "I insist on us submitting the names of the rest of our students. The Goblet will be set up again until each school has three champions. It's only fair." I nodded in agreement, but I was still trying to process the information I just received.

"But Karkaroff, it doesn't work like that," Bagman said. "The Goblet of Fire's just gone out - it won't reignite until the start of the next tournament -"

"- in which Durmstrang will most certainly not be competing!" Karkaroff exploded. "After all our meetings and negotiations and compromises, I little expected something of this nature to occur! I have half a mind to leave now!"

"Empty threat, Karkaroff," growled a voice from near the door. "You can't leave your champion now. He's got to compete. They've all got to compete. Binding magical contract, like Dumbledore said. Convenient, eh?"

I took a moment from my brooding to look at Moody. The more worried feeling disappeared and was replaced with a more understanding one towards the man who just entered the room.

"You reckon someone put our names in there knowing we would have to compete?" I asked. Something akin to a very twisted grin made its way onto Moody's face.

"Ah, you're more than just book smart laddie. You have a little sense in there too," he said, tapping his skull.

"Evidently, someone 'oo wished to give 'Ogwarts three bites at ze apple!" Madame Maxime said, making me shake my head.

"For Harry, that could possibly make sense. He's very talented in his own right. But as far as me, I must disagree. This is a magical tournament. Putting a Muggle in to help and win seems incredibly stupid given they have no idea what the tasks involve," I said.

"I agree wholeheartedly. But given what he is suggesting, we all know Professor Moody considers the morning wasted if he hasn't discuss six plots to murder him by lunchtime," Karkaroff said loudly. "Apparently he is now teaching his students to fear assassination too. An odd quality in a Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Dumbledore, but no doubt you had your reasons."

"Oh, believe me. I had reason to fear assassination long before Moody came into the picture," I said with a grim tone. Several people looked at me like I was very much out of place, but I only waved a dismissive hand. Just because I didn't care if anyone magical knew I was The Vigilante doesn't mean I wanted to brag about it to everyone. Who wants to brag about being a law breaking vigilante who has a body count that could fill several cities? Then I mentally paused for a second. Never mind.

"Oh, I reckon there's something about you that your average Muggle isn't capable of. You wanna tell the people in this room how you singlehandedly killed a Daywalker?" Moody said, making multiple eyes in the room widen.

"Impossible. One Daywalker was worth ten expert Aurors. No possible way he killed one himself," Karkaroff said while I was glaring at Moody. I told him not to mention that. It would just lead to attention I didn't want.

"You underestimate just how skilled and well equipped the Muggle sitting in this room is. That's very foolish to do. And if you don't believe me, feel free to view the Auror reports that are open to the public. Most of the people in the Auror and Law Enforcement thought that it was a lie," he told Karkaroff in a growl.

I sighed and rubbed my temples. I suppose I could understand why he told the Law Enforcement Department because it had to go on file. Just wish he didn't bother telling the people in this room as of now. I could feel a few stares on me. Judging. Analyzing. Calculating. Exactly the kind of attention I wanted to avoid.

"Wonder why that was?" Karkaroff said sarcastically.

"Imagining things, am I?" Moody growled. "Seeing things, eh? Well I know what happened two summers ago, and given how that a skilled witch of wizard put the names of these two into that goblet..."

"Ah, what evidence is zere of zat?" Madame Maxime interjected, throwing up her huge hands.

"Because they hoodwinked a very powerful magical object!" Moody said. "It would have needed an exceptionally strong Confundus Charm to bamboozle that goblet into forgetting that only three schools compete in the tournament... I'm guessing he submitted their names under a fourth and fifth school, to make sure they were the only ones in their category..."

"You seem to have given this a great deal of thought, Moody," Karkaroff said coldly. "And a very ingenious theory it is - though of course, I heard you recently got it into your head that one of your birthday presents contained a cunningly disguised basilisk egg, and smashed it to pieces before realizing it was a carriage clock. So you'll understand if we don't take you entirely seriously..."

"Paranoid or not, there are still hard facts in the room," I reminded Karkaroff.

"He's right. I know for a fact that the both of us never wanted to be in this stupid tournament. Next thing we know, we're forced into it. We either have one of two people who entered our names into that goblet. Someone, who went about it in the strangest way, wanted us to win the tournament for Hogwarts. Option number two is someone looking to kill us," Harry explained, all eyes on him.

I nodded in agreement and Moody nodded with some semblance of satisfaction. Karkaroff looked exasperated and Madame Maxime, Crouch, and Bagman as well as the other teachers besides Snape and Dumbledore just stared at the both of us. Given how we seemed to be taking this situation like Moody was, that was probably the reason why.

"Maybe the both of them will get through this tournament with sense like that. There are those who'll turn innocent occasions to their advantage," Moody said while turning back to Karkaroff with a menacing tone. "It's my job to think the way Dark wizards do, Karkaroff - as you ought to remember..."

"Alastor!" Dumbledore said with a warning tone. I turned to Karkaroff and my eyes narrowed a bit when I saw the way his face was burning.

"I need to keep my eye on him..." I thought as I turned back around. I can tell what Moody just said wasn't some idle retort. It meant something.

"How this situation arose, we do not know," Dumbledore said, speaking to everyone gathered in the room. "It seems to me, however, that we have no choice but to accept it. These champions have been chosen to compete in the Tournament. This, therefore, they will do..."

"Ah, but Dumbly-dorr -"

"My dear Madame Maxime, if you have an alternative, I would be delighted to hear it."

Dumbledore waited, but Madame Maxime did not speak, she merely glared. She wasn't the only one either. Karkaroff looked livid; Snape seemed to be fighting off the merest traces of an angry look; Bagman, however, looked rather excited.

"Well, shall we crack on, then?" he said, rubbing his hands together and smiling around the room. "Got to give our champions their instructions, haven't we? Barty, want to do the honors?"

Mr. Crouch seemed to come out of a deep reverie.

"Yes," he said, "instructions. Yes... the first task..."

He moved forward into the firelight. I tilted my head at him. I could see the dark shadows under his eyes and his skin looked like it was made of paper. He didn't look like that at the Cup. Was he working double overtime since the World Cup incident? If Percy had to be working extra, Mr. Crouch certainly did.

"The first task is designed to test your daring," he told all of us. "So we are not going to be telling you what it is. Courage in the face of the unknown in a very important quality in a wizard, or in this case..." he gestured to me. "...Muggle. It shall take place on November the twenty-forth, in front of the other students and the panel of judges."

"The champions are not permitted to ask for or accept help from any kind of their teachers to complete the tasks in the tournament. The champions will face the first challenge armed only with their wands. They will receive..." He was cut off by me raising a hand all of sudden.

"Hold on. You said only wands are allowed?" I questioned with disbelief. I heard it, but I didn't want to believe it.

"That is correct. Unfortunately, that leaves you with no options," Mr. Crouch said. Something akin to sympathy came across the man's face.

I could feel everyone in the room stare at me, and I couldn't blame them. I was on the teetering edge of wanting to punch a hole in the wall, flipping a table, then storming out. But I just stood there with a blank look on my face. This was absolutely ridiculous. Not to mention I had no idea what the first task was going to be? This was going to be a ridiculous year.

"Anyway, you all will receive information about the second task once the first task is over. Owing to the demanding and time-consuming nature of the tournament, the champions are exempted from end-of-year tests."

"One very tiny silver lining out of this," I thought with a bitter tone.

Mr. Crouch turned to look at Dumbledore.

"I think that's all, is it, Albus?"

"I think so," Dumbledore said, who was looking at Mr. Crouch with mild concern. "Are you sure you wouldn't like to stay at Hogwarts tonight, Barty?" Looks I wasn't the only one who noticed Crouch's appearance.

"No, Dumbledore, I must get back to the Ministry," Mr. Crouch said. "It is a very busy, very difficult time at the moment... I've left young Weatherby in charge... (Even that couldn't cheer me up) Very enthusiastic... a little overenthusiastic, if truth be told..."

"You'll come and have a drink before you go, at least?" Dumbledore said.

"Come on, Barry, I'm staying!" Bagman said brightly. "It's all happening at Hogwarts now, you know, much more exciting here than at the office!" I couldn't help but feel slightly irked at Bagman. He seemed to be acting like this entire turn of events was a good thing. I understood the man was a bright person, but come on.

"I think not, Ludo," Crouch said with a touch of his old impatience.

"Professor Karkaroff - Madame Maxime - a nightcap?" Dumbledore said.

But Madame Maxime had already put her arm around Fleur's shoulders and was leading her swiftly out of the room, talking rapidly in French. Madame Maxime started with how this whole situation was ridiculous to put it kindly. Fleur seemed to focusing on how Hogwarts has three champions to their one. Then their voices faded before I caught any more.

Karkaroff beckoned to Krum, and they, too, exited, though in silence. Krum was silent the entire time the talking was going on. I had no idea how he was taking the news. No matter who you were, profiling Krum was like trying to profile a blank piece of paper.

"Harry, Robert, Cedric, I suggest you go up to bed," Dumbledore said, smiling at us. "I am sure Gryffindor and Hufflepuff are waiting to celebrate with you, and it would be a shame to deprive them of this excellent excuse to make a great deal of mess and noise."

"I'm not much in the mood for celebrating Albus," I said with sour tone. His smile disappeared and was replaced with one more sympathetic.

"I'm afraid everything seems to happen to you all at least," Dumbledore said, patting me on the shoulder. "The most you will be able to do is steel yourselves for what is to come and deal with it when it does." I nodded, but the words hardly reassured me. They only set in that foreboding feeling of dread for what is to come.

Then the three of us walked into the deserted Great Hall. Guess everyone went up to bed. I had so many emotions running through my head, I didn't know what to think. Anger. Rage. Dread. Shock. Disbelief. Fear for the child that was on my left. Why does everything have to happen to us?

"So," Cedric said with a slight smile. "We're playing against each other!"

"If we had any choice in the matter, we'd be cheering you on in the stands instead," Harry said in a bitter tone. The smile on his face disappeared, and was replaced by one more even, slightly adjusted by a frown.

"Yeah, well... what happens just happens. For what it's worth, I do believe that you two didn't enter your names. I mean... you fought tooth and nail to try and get yourself out of the tournament to the point where you were just going to not participate," Cedric said, pointing to me. I laughed hollowly.

"Yeah. And then Crouch told me there's a chance that the magical contract will basically be a one way ticket to a Dementor's Kiss. And that Harry will lose his magic if he doesn't compete. Of all the rotten..." I trailed before ending it with a frustrated growl. "I hate this. I really do hate this. If they have any sense, the person who put our names in that Goblet ought to be running. Cause when I find his ass, he'll wish he did run."

"Yeah, well..." Cedric trailed, somewhat put off by my dark tone of voice. Most people weren't used to it yet. It could still scare the living daylights out of some people even when it wasn't directed at them. "I guess I'll see you both later." Then he walked towards a door on the right instead of the marble staircase. Harry immediately looked at me.

"You reckon this is Voldemort's doing?" he asked.

"I have no doubt that it is. But the question is who? You told me in your vision, you saw Wormtail, right?" I asked.

"Yeah. He seems to be the only one providing Voldemort immediate assistance. And he doesn't have the magical talent to fill a teacup. Only cowardice and some basest use is the only reason Voldemort has him as a Death Eater in the first place," Harry said.

"Or is he the only one?" I questioned.

"You reckon he's got more people out there?" Harry asked.

"It's a feeling. Voldemort barely has a physical form, so it's more than unlikely he could sneak into Hogwarts, put our names in the Cup, and sneak back to Albania. From the description of your visions, he couldn't even travel without needing long periods of rest," I told him. "And I know Wormtail is nowhere near talented or cunning enough to do something like this. It has to be another. The question is who? The Lestranges are still in Azkaban... Avery maybe? Malfoy? Who could possibly be assisting him?"

"Never heard of Avery, but you suspect Malfoy?" Harry asked.

"Regardless of the pathetic excuse for a wizard that is Draco Malfoy, you have to realize that his father is far more cunning. Just having met the man tells me that he's everything his son his not. He knows how to keep a level head when insults come his way, he's a master at manipulation, and he plays the Ministry like a fiddle using smooth words and the money in his pocket," I explained to him. "He defines the meaning of a Slytherin, to be quite honest. I wouldn't put it past him to be a skilled wizard as well. With his cunning, it is entirely possible that he could've put our names in the Cup. That is, if he found Voldemort and is already acting as an agent for him."

"The base problem is that there's no way to know. We have no clues, no leads to work on... This isn't like the Chamber of Secrets. We have no evidence to go off of," Harry said, making me nod grimly.

"I'm afraid so. But more than ever this year, keep your guard up. For all I know this tournament could also act as a distraction," I said.

"A distraction?" Harry questioned before understanding came on to his face. "You think the culprit's still hiding in the castle?"

"I wouldn't put it past him to be doing so. All it takes is a little planning, knowledge of your schedule, and then boom. A well timed attack to which you have no counter. So if you can, stick with somebody. Preferrably me, your friends, or a teacher. We'll spend plenty of time on the tournament as well; do as much research as we can so we can get a clue as to what it is we're supposed to be doing," I explained, my head spinning from all the things we would have to keep track of.

"It's going to be a long year," Harry said, heavily blowing out a puff of breath as we reached the Fat Lady. For once, she wasn't alone. And both of them were looking at us with interest.

"Well, well, well," the Fat Lady said, "Violet's just told me everything. Who's just been chosen as school champion, then?"

"Balderdash," I said simply, rubbing my temples.

"It most certainly isn't!" the pale witch said indignantly.

"No, no, Vi, it's the password," the Fat Lady said soothingly, and she swung forward on her hinges to let us into the common room.

The noise that hit us once the entrance opened made the both of us raise our hands as if we were trying to block light instead of noise. Then we were both grabbed by the shoulders by half a dozen hands each until we dug our heels into the floor. It took all of their strength to even move Harry, and they couldn't move me at all. Finally, they desisted, and we walked in of our own accord. The whole House was either screaming, clapping, and/or whistling.

"You should've told us you both entered!" Fred bellowed, torn between annoyance and being impressed.

"How'd you do it without getting a beard? Brilliant!" George roared.

"Not only is it one, but two Gryffindors are competing!" Angelina exclaimed, coming out of nowhere.

"You'll be able to pay Diggory back for that last Quidditch match!" Katie Bell shrieked. I was half torn between two kinds of disbelief. The disbelief that they all insisted we snuck our names in or the fact that Katie Bell was still upset about that last match against Hufflepuff.

"We've got food. Come on and have some," Angelina told us. We both shook our heads.

"No, we're fine. Except ill about the situation," I told her.

"Why are you upset? You're both Champions!" both Fred and George exclaimed at the same time.

"Because we didn't put our names in," Harry insisted. "Come on now. Given everything that's happened at this school for the past three years I've been here, you expect me to want put myself in more danger? Between the Sorcerer's Stone, a basilisk, Dementors, and Sirius Black?"

The noise stopped and they seemed to really ponder Harry's thoughts. Then they turned to me. I only shook my head.

"Don't look at me. As skilled as I am, it's a Triwizard Tournament. Considering the name, I'm more than inclined to believe that these tasks could only be done by a witch or wizard. Considering I'm a Muggle, my chances of succeeding wouldn't seem very likely," I told them.

"Damn. That's... blimey," Fred said, all traces of excitement gone from his face.

"Yeah," Harry said with a sigh.

"Hold up. When you enter the tournament, you basically sign a magical contract, right?" Angelina asked.

"That's right," I confirmed with a nod.

"Well, since you're Muggle, all you have to do is not compete! You'll be fine," she told me, a small smile coming to her face in reassurance.

"He tried that. He got an answer that was worse than competing in the tournament," Harry said in a bitter tone, making the smile instantly disappear from Angelina's face.

"What's the deal?" Katie Bell asked.

"If I don't compete in this tournament, there's a chance I could lose my soul," I told them, instantly striking every face in the room with horror.

"What, like a Dementor's Kiss?" George asked.

"Exactly like that. Only with less of the fear bullshit. Apparently, all souls have magical signatures. Including Muggle ones. Since I don't have a magical core, the contract may take priority over the one thing that does a magical signature. My soul," I said, causing every face in the common room to immediately turn grim.

"I can't believe how well you're taking that," Angelina said, making me shrug.

"Believe me. It's taking everything in me not to punch a hole in the wall," I said with a sigh. "Anyway, I'd rather go on up to bed. I want to spend a couple of hours believing that this didn't happen. Night." Me and Harry then walked up to our dorms. We saw Ron sitting on his bed fully clothed.

"Hey. Surprised you're not down with the others," I said, making him turn around to face us. I frowned at the very strained smile on his face as I moved to remove my trench coat.

"Don't bother trying to pretend to feel happy for us. We're not very happy about it either," Harry said, beginning to change clothes.

"You aren't? But... you're champions. Thousand Galleons prize money, fame, no end-of-year tests? Sounds like a good deal," Ron said.

"I'd rather take the opposite of all that than compete in this stupid tournament," I said bitterly as I began to change into shorts.

"Oh, come on. Can you at least tell me how you managed to get your names in the goblet?" Ron asked, making me look at him in disbelief.

"Are you fucking serious? The last thing we wanted to was to enter this tournament. We told you this," Harry suddenly said, in his night clothes.

"Yeah, okay," Ron said in a skeptical tone. "You say that, but then the next thing you know, you're both in the tournament."

"You act like there's not someone out there who wants Harry dead. I guess they figure it's also the perfect chance to get rid of me as well," I told him.

"And you said that You-Know-Who was weak and had pretty much no power, and Wormtail was all he had. I'm not stupid, you know," Ron said.

"Then stop insisting on making yourself look like you are and believe us. Why would we keep this from you? We wouldn't do that. We tell each other everything," I told him. Judging by the look on his face, the only thing that seemed to register in his mind was the part where I suggested he was stupid.

Groaning in disbelief, I collapsed on my bed. It's strange. We managed to convince all of Gryffindor House that we didn't enter our names in the tournament in nearly no time at all. But we couldn't convince the person we called a "friend" to believe us. I grabbed one of the pillows and held it over my face. Hopefully I would suffocate and get reincarnated into a better life. A life that wasn't full of certain death, dead loved ones, and suffering. Then again, I'm not that lucky.


	9. Chapter 9 - Shit Gets Stressful

"I don't care if he's jealous. He's being an idiot in the process," I told Hermione.

"Listen, Harry gets a lot of attention with him being 'The Boy Who Lived' and all of that. Not to mention the things that the school knows you're capable of. Regardless of your reputation as a Muggle in this place, you are popular. Muggle borns still take glances at you when you're not looking because they're around Robert Morgan, one of the greatest inventors ever."

"Your point?" Harry questioned.

"You're both rich. You're both famous. When it comes to be the both of you, Ron is shunted to the side. This is one time too many for him, I guess," Hermione said.

"He out of all people should know that the both of us hate our fame. We don't like it. We don't treat it like an average thing. We _hate_ it," I emphasized. "Getting more money would be pointless, and why would we both be putting ourselves into a tournament that would give us more of something that we hate? When it comes to jealousy, I understand it does nasty things to the mind, but he's overlooking the obvious. Because we've mentioned this so many times around you two, it seems inconceivable. Believe me, I want what Ron has, but do I show it to him? No."

"What do you-"

"He has family," I injected swiftly. "I love Maman and Papa, don't get me wrong, but they are surrogates of my really family. I don't have their genes. I didn't come from their flesh and blood. There's just that one little feeling of misplacement when it comes to them."

"Now look at Ron. He has his family. He hasn't been through hard times where he had to live with the fact that he doesn't have his mother and father. No siblings. No aunt, uncle, and the like. I would love that privlege. All of my family that has even the tiniest bit of my blood is full on dead. I have no one left in this world who is related to me."

"Until Harry came along, I hadn't been happy for a while. Then there was..." I shook my head in an attempt to dispel the memory. "The point is that he wants what Harry has. He wants what I have. But what he doesn't realize is that if he did, he'd never be happy."

"But he doesn't realize that. And that's the thing. You both need to talk to him," Hermione said.

"I'm not explaining a damn thing to him," Harry said, tossing the rest of the toast Hermione gave him in the lake.

"Neither am I. If he wants to wait until I've gotten killed by a magical booby trap or something to believe us, then that's his problem. Until then, he can go stuff himself full of food until he explodes, because I refuse to tell him a damn thing. All of Gryffindor House had no reason to believe us when we laid the facts down for them, but they did. Now the person we're supposed to call a friend won't believe us when we tell him we didn't enter our names?" I questioned in a tone of disbelief. "Fuck. That. Tell him whatever you want, but I'm not saying two words to him until he admits that he's wrong and apologizes. Or unless we're paired up in some kind of schoolwork."

"Oh, fine. I can't believe how stubborn the two of you are being," Hermione said.

"It's not being stubborn. It's called taking a stand. This isn't the first time we've had to deal with Ron's jealousy, but this is a different situation entirely. So we're not going to run after him," Harry told her firmly.

"Fine. Regardless of what you want to do concerning Ron, I do think Sirius will want to know what happened," Hermione said.

"Now on that, we agree. If we can find the time, we'll start a call with him and let him know. It'd be nice to have his input on the situation," I said, finishing my piece of toast and dusting my hands off. "I'd rather him know from us than the Daily Prophet."

"Well, at least I know in some situations, you have a heart," Hermione said, making me smile a little.

"Don't tell anyone," I said in a fake whisper, making Harry smile as well. God, it felt like ages since we smiled. And the fact that we had to compete in this tournament was only transferred over the course of a night.

* * *

"Ah, look, boys, it's the champions," Malfoy said to Crabbe and Goyle the moment we got within earshot of him. "Got your autograph books? Better get a signature now, because I doubt they're going to be around much longer... Half the Triwizard champions have died... how long d'you reckon you're going to last? I'd wager ten minutes for Potter, thirty seconds for the Muggle."

I only rolled my eyes as Crabbe and Goyle laughed like the mindless drones they were. Judging by the way Harry looked, he did the same. But Hagrid emerged from his cabin while balancing a teetering tower of crates, each containing a very large Blast-Ended Skrewt. To the everyone's horror and my mild interest(Don't know what was wrong with me), Hagrid proceeded to explain that the reason the skrewts had been killing one another was an excess of pent-up energy, and that the solution would be for each student to fix a leash on a skrewt and take it for a short walk. It shut Malfoy up about the tournament. I could say that much.

I got a skrewt of my own, and I wrapped about two feet of the leash's handle around my hand as I was walking it. Every once in a while, it would try and dash forward with an alarming bang. _Try_ to. I wasn't going to let this thing drag me like I was part of a slave transfer. Every time I forced it to stay in place, it almost fell on its back in the process. Several Slytherins looked at me as they had to pick themselves up, and looked disappointed that I wasn't having the same struggle as them. That granted one of the few smiles I felt I was going to get while this tournament was going on.

This shit with the tournament felt like those moments in school when you were on the ass end of a bad rumor. The Slytherins were assholes, to no one's surprise. The Hufflepuffs surely didn't give a damn about us. I could understand that at the very least, considering the circumstances. But even the Ravenclaws seemed set about us entering our names in the tournament. I'm a _Muggle_ entering a _wizarding_ tournament. And they were supposed to be the smart House. Yeah. Ok. Not to mention our research in the library wasn't going nowhere near as well as I hoped.

"Amazing. Apparently these people had the imagination to make every Triwizard Tournament different and just as deadly," Harry said in disbelief.

"When it comes to deadly events, people will..." I then looked from the book I was reading over to some Hufflepuff girls, who were looking at me and Harry like we were Blast Ended Skrewts. "One second." I then looked over to the girls with a dark look on my face.

"If you don't stop staring at us like we're the second coming of the Black Plague, I'm going to scoop your eyes with rusty spoons and make you wander the freeway during Rush Hour," I said with a dark tone. Some of them had to be Muggleborn, given the way some of them got fearful looks on their faces at my threat. They immediately left, and I couldn't help but smile.

"That's quite the threat to make," Harry said.

"I actually did that to somebody once. To a serial killer who loved keeping body parts as trophies, I remember. Not with a rusty spoon, but a combat knife. Does it make me a bad person that I wanted to laugh at the time?" I asked.

"How was he walking?" Harry asked.

"Like a zombie, only he was screaming from the pain of his eyes at the time. Hands out and everything like this," I said, my arms held out in front of me in a cliche zombie fashion. Harry held back a snicker while I was chuckling. I already accepted the fact that I was a goddamn psychopath, but apparently, Harry was becoming one too.

"Then no. I'd probably stop laughing after he got hit by a car, but the process of him trying to navigate sounds like it would actually be kind of funny," Harry said, making me shake my head.

"You're becoming about as much of a sadist as me," I said.

"And that's a bad thing? It's not like I would enjoy doing it to innocent people. Just jackasses," Harry said in a nonplussed tone.

"Yup. You're me in everything concerning the mind. Well, except the knowledge. Anyway, there's nothing we can do in hopes of figuring out what the first task is. You reckon we ought to set aside some time to call Sirius?" I asked.

"Uh huh. Think we're done here. It's only been a day, so hopefully he hasn't gone to pick up a copy of the Prophet," I told him.

"He still goes out?" Harry asked.

"Uh huh. I make him wear a disguise, but he's perfectly free to go out in the Muggle and wizarding world without having people call the Aurors on him," I told him.

"What's the disguise?" Harry asked.

"I just sculpted the face of a random guy's face that was in the database. He lives in Russia, and he's a Muggle. So the odds of him coming to Britain are slim, much less anyone finding him in the wizarding world," I told Harry.

"Is it like those sculptured faces that actors use?" he asked.

"Yup. Kind of fun to make, to be honest. I'm working on a better alternative, but it's taking time. That and the teleportation device are the number one things I want to perfect," I told him.

"You'll get it," Harry said, grabbing his books. "Let's just go ahead and leave so we can call him."

I nodded before Harry put the books he had back where he found them and we walked out of the library. We decided on making the call on top of the Astronomy Tower. No one really came up there when classes weren't going on, so it was about as good a place as any to have a call.

 _"I was wondering when you'd call,"_ Sirius said once we connected.

"You already know, don't you," Harry said. It wasn't a question.

 _"Uh huh. Read the Prophet this morning. I was livid when I found out. There's really no way for either of you to get out of this tournament?"_ Sirius asked.

"Nope. If Harry doesn't compete he loses his magic, and if I don't compete, I'll lose my soul. Sounds fair, doesn't it?" I said with a bitter tone.

 _"How does that work?"_ Sirius asked.

"Some reference to soul magic. Me not being a wizard basically makes the magical contract take my soul instead of my lack of a magical core," I told him.

 _"Damn. How you taking that?"_ Sirius asked.

"Once I restrained the urge to punch a wall and flip a table, I was better. But it's still upsetting," I said.

 _"No kidding. I heard what a lack of a soul will do to you. It's a fate worse than death,"_ Sirius said.

"I know that. That's why I'm bothering with this stupid thing. But I'm more worried about the tasks. If they consist of something only wizards are capable of, I'm done for," I told him.

 _"Knowing you, you'll still kick ass in this tournament. But there's more pressing things I need to tell you about,"_ Sirius said.

"Like what?" Harry asked.

 _"Karkaroff. He was a Death Eater,"_ Sirius said, making me frown even more.

"Moody knows about it too. That's why he said what he said back in that room," I told Sirius.

 _"That's because Moody caught Karkaroff; locked him up in the first place. Upon seeing him, knowing Moody, he probably had to stop himself from cursing him on sight. You reckon he might've put your names in the Goblet?"_ Sirius asked.

"Probably. If he had known that there was no way for us to get out of the tournament, then he could pretend to want to get us out of it all he wanted, but it wouldn't have changed what Voldemort wanted," I told him.

 _"I'm not surprised that you're still as sharp as ever. That's probably the reason Dumbledore hired Moody in the first place - to keep an eye on him. But ever since he got released, he's been teaching Dark Arts to ever student he can get his hands on, so watch out for the Durmstrang champion,"_ Sirius warned us. I frowned in displeasure. I haven't run into too many Durmstrang students, but the ones I have glare daggers at me. I would definitely have to watch myself around them.

"Duly noted. I'll toss a few Bone Breaking Hexes at his legs and arms if necessary," Harry said.

 _"Glad you're willing to fight rough. That's what's needed in this tournament. Have you been keeping an eye on the Prophet?"_ Sirius asked.

"I try not to. Neither of us want to hear a damn thing about our participation in the tournament," I told him.

 _"I wasn't talking about recently, but I'll explain what I mean anyway. Given what I saw about Skeeter's article, Moody was attacked right before he started Hogwarts. She claims it was another false alarm, but I don't believe it. Someone wanted to stop him from getting to Hogwarts,"_ Sirius said.

"Because their job would be a lot harder to get done otherwise," Harry finished. "Well, they're good then. They still got our names in that damn goblet."

 _"That may be so, but if all else fails, if you don't die because of the tasks, they'll take it upon themselves to finish you,"_ Sirius said.

"That's why I told him last night that we ought to travel in packs. For all we know, this tournament could be a distraction from the real threat. An assassin skulking somewhere around here," I told him.

 _"You've considered just about every possibility, haven't you?"_ Sirius asked, making me nod.

"Him being a vigilante for six years kind of makes that a requirement," Harry reminded him, almost making me grin.

 _"True. Anyway, Harry, this one's more for you. I know you practice your magic plenty, but you might want to do so even more. And I don't care who you have to get to sign the forms, but look into some of those books on Dark Magic. You don't have to use it if you don't want to, but it never hurts to at least know what your enemy is capable of,"_ Sirius told him, making Harry nod.

"Of course. Trust me, if I find the person who put our names in the goblet, I might practice on him," Harry said darkly.

"I know for a fact it's a Death Eater. And I don't give a damn what Dumbledore or anyone says. If I find him, he's a dead man or woman. It would be wonderful if it was Bellatrix Lestrange even though it would be all over the papers if she escaped. It would make my day to murder that bitch," I said darkly. Sirius chuckled. I appreciated how dark it sounded.

 _"If you find her, tell her dear cousin Sirius says hello,"_ he said.

"My condolences, Sirius. For what it's worth, I don't blame you for having to be in a family tree of Dark wizards or just assholes in general," I told him, making him laugh shortly.

 _"It's fine. I'm already used to it,"_ Sirius assured me. _"Anyway, there's another thing I want to bring up. You heard of that Ministry of Magic witch who's gone missing?"_

"Bertha Jorkins?" Harry asked. "Yeah, why?"

 _"She disappeared in Albania. The last place where Voldemort was rumored to be,"_ Sirius said.

"Given how he was hiding, there's no way she would just stumble upon him. Voldemort had to have taken her for a reason," Harry said.

 _"She would've known the Triwizard Tournament was coming, but how would Voldemort have known she would've had information that would remotely interest him?"_ Sirius questioned.

"That thought worries me. I have the idea that Voldemort has another agent working outside of the house he's holed up in if it isn't Karkaroff," I told him.

 _"I haven't the slightest idea who it could be. To my knowledge, every Dark wizard who's free is either in hiding or living life as a 'squeaky clean citizen.' Plus everyone who has the faintest idea that Voldemort's alive that has their freedom knows that he's not very strong. Therefore, they would have no motive to go back to him unless they were sure that he was strong enough to protect them,"_ Sirius explained, making me nod grimly in processing that fact.

"I have a small suspicion it may be Malfoy senior. What do you think?" I asked.

 _"Nah. Regardless of him having the smarts to pull something like this off, he is a coward. He would never put himself in a situation where he doesn't know all of the facts. Also, regardless of him being a snake through and through, he does care for his family. If there's any indication that going back to Voldemort could put his son and wife in danger, he's not going to do it,"_ Sirius explained, making me sigh.

"Damn him for having the basest bit of morals. Alright, so we can cross him off the 'likely suspect' list and put him on one for 'remote possibility.' Great," I said, rubbing my temples. "Any thoughts about the tasks we're in for?"

 _"Not unless you have an idea as to what you're in for,"_ Sirius said.

"We don't. They didn't tell us anything about them," Harry said in a sour tone.

 _"Then I'm afraid I can't help you. Sorry,"_ Sirius said.

"It's alright. Luckily, I'm an improviser. Harry still needs a little work, but he's pretty good at it," I told him.

 _"Good. You'll need it. Now, judging by the time, it's almost time for another lesson, isn't it?"_ Sirius asked.

"Yeah. Double Potions," I said.

"The Slytherins are going to be right bastards," Harry said.

"I don't know if I have the patience for Malfoy's lip," I said.

 _"You'll be fine. If a Muggle wins this tournament, that'll wipe the smirk of any Slytherin's face. You both show em that Gryffindor House is the best House for a reason, dammit,"_ Sirius said, making me smile.

"I'll do my best to oblige you," I said.

"Why couldn't we have someone who was like you as a friend here? We'd be less upset," Harry said. I didn't even have to see at Sirius to know he had a wide grin on his face.

 _"Cause no one can hope to achieve my level of hilarity. Not to mention handsomeness,"_ he said with a cocky tone. I wouldn't be surprised if he was adjusting his collar even though we couldn't see him. _"Anyway, go ahead and go to Potions. And give Ol' Snapeypoo a kick up the ass for me."_

"Oy. You two are never going to get along, are you?" I asked.

 _"Considering he wanted to sign me up for a lip lock with a Dementor, no. He can go fuck himself. Not like he'll get anyone else to do it with him. Male or female. Anyway, I'll see you two. Keep me updated,"_ Sirius said.

"Of course. Thanks Sirius," Harry said gratefully.

 _"Anytime,"_ Sirius said before ending the call.

"Amazing. We both happen to be friendly with two people that would like nothing more to kill each other," Harry said dryly.

"Life has always been an insane clusterfuck," I told him as I put one of my hands on his shoulder, steering us toward the dungeons.

The Slytherins were waiting outside, each wearing a large badge on the front of their robes. Each of them said, "SUPPORT CEDRIC DIGGORY - THE REAL HOGWARTS CHAMPION!" That didn't bother me at all. He _was_ the real champion. We were here because of our shit luck of avoiding dangerous situations.

"To be quite honest, I'll actually take one of those," I said evenly. Several of the Slytherins reeled back in shock. They obviously didn't expect me to respond like that. Never in my life would I ever have thought I would be asking a Slytherin for something, but hey. First time for everything. Plus the looks on their faces was definitely worth doing that.

"Me too," Harry said. Malfoy however, seemed to have taken it in stride.

"Oh, that isn't all they do. Look!" he said, pressing his badge into his chest. The message was replaced with "POTTER AND THE MUGGLE STINK!"

"I'm shocked. You actually used correct grammar in this case," I said dryly as each of the Slytherins howled with laughter.

"On second thought, you can keep them. I don't recommend wearing one in front of people though. Highlighting a face such as yours would keep Madam Pomfrey busy for the next two months," Harry said in a dry tone, causing the Gryffindors that were here to roar with laughter. Ron's face twitched as if he wanted to laugh, but nothing came out.

Malfoy's face fell. He seemed to expect us to be a lot more upset by the badges than we were. Then he turned to Hermione, who joined in with laughing with the Gryffindors at Harry's insult.

"Want one, Granger?" Malfoy said, holding out a badge to Hermione. "I've got loads. But don't touch my hand, now. I've just washed it, you see; don't want a Mudblood sliming it up." Now that pissed me off. Given everything that's been going on, I had no patience to react nice.

SMACK!

My hand moved in a blur; backhanding Malfoy swiftly. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I managed to pull the strength of my punch. I knocked out about four of his teeth before holding the front of his robes with my left hand, a furious look on my face. I then hit Crabbe, who was the first to move in for an attack, in the stomach before following it up with an uppercut hard enough to break his nose, send him flying several meters, and fall unconscious. I then turned back to Malfoy before lifting him up to force him against the wall.

"I dare you to repeat that. _I'll break every bone in your body Malfoy,"_ I growled, my tone venomous. His ability to form words were limited given his noticable lack of teeth. My mouth formed into a twisted grin as I watched him painfully attempt to form words.

"What's the matter? Hard to talk with no teeth?" I said before immediately ducking a curse that was headed for me. Luckily for Malfoy, it seemed that the spell he fired was a Relashio charm, so it had no effect on him. The person who fired the spell was Snape. He looked at me with traces of dissatisfaction on his face.

"I do realize you are now a school champion, but you need to realize that it does not give you the right to brutalize other students. Fifty points from Gryffindor and you'll be serving detention with me for a week," Snape said icily.

"You may want to double up on those punishments," I told him. He raised a questioning eyebrow, and my response was to sock a slowly rising Malfoy in the ribs, breaking one of them. I had to hold back a smile at the pained groan he gave off once that bone broke.

"So it seems. A hundred points then with a month's worth of detentions," Snape said.

"Worth it to shut people up who love to use the word Mudblood with reckless abandon," I said, staring at Malfoy coldly before walking inside. Then Snape moved his hooked nose to Malfoy.

"Fifty points from Slytherin," he said with dissatisfaction. If Malfoy could talk properly, he'd be complaining all of the way. I could tell.

"Sir, why are you-"

"Because the use of that word is something that should never occur. No matter the circumstances. If Mr. Morgan hadn't hurt Mr. Malfoy as badly as he did, the punishment would've been more severe. But judging from his inability to talk and his pained grunts, he's regretting it plenty as of now. Now..." Snape looked over at an unconscious Crabbe. Then he sighed. "Goyle, Parkinson. Assist Mr. Malfoy and Crabbe to the hospital wing. And I know how long it takes for Madam Pomfrey to heal a broken nose. Crabbe better be back within fifteen minutes, or he _will_ regret it. Understand?"

"Yes sir," Goyle and Pansy said at the same time, moving to help their respective Slytherin House members to the hospital wing. I mentally nodded in satisfaction. At the very least, he was being fair. I hurt Malfoy fairly bad this time around. And it felt damn good.

"Normally you're not that easy to set off. You haven't hurt him this bad since first year," Harry said.

"With the stress of this stupid tournament, getting the cold shoulder from anyone who isn't a teacher or a Gryffindor, and the fact that I have no idea what the first task is supposed to be all about? I did not have the patience to hear him mouth off to Hermione about her being a Mudblood. I have a very short fuse right now," I explained to him.

"Yeah, but still. You shouldn't have done something like that. Snape has a habit of just popping up," Hermione said in a whisper as we took our seats. "You reckon you will be able to prepare for the tournament still?"

"What preparation?" I said with a hollow laugh. "I don't have a damned clue as to what it is I'm supposed to be dealing with. You reckon reading about a whole bunch of nothing is going to help me prepare for a task I could possibly die from?!"

I hadn't realized that I was on my feet and looking down on Hermione. She flinched from me as the entire class and Snape was looking at me. I put a hand on my forehead and shook it regretfully.

"I'm sorry," I told her before looking up at Snape. "Bill me for the detentions later." I then walked out of his class. First time I did it, but to hell with it. I needed to get out of there. I was not in a good state of mind.

I didn't want to explode on her like that, but I did. I had a habit of bottling up everything inside. In her worry, she ended up bringing up the subject I severely wanted to avoid. The task that was to come worried me more than anything. Because people have died in this tournament. Other wizards. Considering this task was all about something that was made for wizards, there was no guarantee that I would actually be able to deal with what happened.

My feet ended up taking me back to my unfinished jet near the Beaubaxtons carriage. I sighed before summoning all of my tools near here. I then used the board to smoothly slide myself under the jet and began to adjust the scanner that was at the bottom.

"Let's see," I said aloud, mentally bringing up my progress. "Thermal is done. AS is done. Think the identification and tech processor are all that have to be done."

"You suppose I know wat zose are supposed to do?" a voice said from the outside. I slid from up under the jet and looked right into the face of Fleur Delacour. The French girl from the forest was with her. Think Fleur said her name was Aurore.

"Didn't even know you were there. You're surprisingly quiet. That or I'm just more distracted," I said, sitting up and rubbing my temples.

"You alright?" Aurore asked me. Unlike Fleur, her English seemed to be perfect. Only it wasn't when I met her in the forest. That made me raise a mental eyebrow. If I didn't run them off, maybe I would ask about it another time.

"No. I'm stuck in this stupid tournament. It's stressing me out," I said, running one of my hands down my face.

"You look zirty years older," Fleur said, making me laugh hollowly.

"Ironic that I feel like a seventy year old war veteran," I said, before grabbing a tool and sliding back up under the jet.

"Why would you be stressed? You knew what you were getting yourself into when you chose to put yourself in that goblet," Aurore said, causing me let off a small growl.

"Sure. Go ahead and follow the herd when they say that I'm entering my name in hopes of making a name for myself in the wizarding world. It's nothing different than what I should expect, right?" I said, my tone sounding a little like a rabid dog. I then ran the diagnostic on the scanner. It was working perfectly. All I had to do was set up the programs.

"You would 'ave to be extremely foolhardy to enter zis tournament knowing zat you're risking your soul if you did not compete," Fleur said.

"Your point?" I questioned impatiently.

"Given your attitude, I do not believe you are foolhardy," Fleur said, making my shoulders relax.

"Thanks," I said, my tone kinder now. The furious animal in me had faded a little.

"What, you're saying you didn't enter your name?" Aurore questioned.

"Let me let you in on a little tidbit about me," I said, sliding up from under the jet and pointing at myself as I rose to my feet. "I've risked my life enough times to want to avoid doing it any more than I have to. Besides, to enter a wizarding tournament without a lick of magical ability is fucking stupid. And I'd like to think that I am far from stupid."

I then focused my attention on the computer that I had also brought up. Time to design the next scan system.

"Zis is yours?" Fleur asked. She obviously knew it was mine. She was just looking for a change of subject from the tournament. I was grateful for that. At least she was gifted with the power of kindness and subtlety. I wasn't holding out much hope for her friend.

"Uh huh. Designed it myself. It was rather simple at first, but now I'm tinkering with some upgrades. Anyone try to touch it?" I asked.

"We dared one of the boys here to do it. With Fleur, they didn't refuse. We thought he was dead when we saw him fall from electrocution. His clothes were charred as well. That stopped anyone from going near it," Aurore said, making a smile come to my face.

"Well, maybe when they see a sign that says 'Don't touch', they won't touch it. I take extreme measures with my security. Believe me when I say the voltage goes up higher than what it was when he touched it. This thing can generate enough electricity to burn someone's flesh off on contact. It's not a pretty sight," I told them, making them grimace.

"What ever would you need so much power for?" Fleur asked.

"To not have the need of a secondary power source, cannibalism. Things of the sort," I said, making the two Frenchwomen look at me strangely. "Ok, I was joking about the last one. I'm pretty sure I'd rather stick with chicken."

"I would hope so. Otherwise, I would fear what your breath would smell like," Aurore said.

"Like cooked meat with a hint of blood. Then I would drown my throat with mouthwash to get rid of the taste and probably follow it up with bleach and Febreeze," I said as I heard a beep of confirmation. Then I began to start on the next scan sequence. Judging from the anxious looks on both of their faces, they wanted to look closer, but they feared the threat of electrocution.

"I'm programming the scanner below for multiple options. Anyway, don't mind the interruption to whatever you were going to do. I promise it's not going to be set to spy on you while you're changing," I said dryly. "I have far more pressing and less pathetic matters to attend to."

"I wouldn't put it past a guy to do something like that when it comes to her," Aurore said, narrowing her eyes.

"I'm not a guy. I'm a man," I said, making Fleur raise an eyebrow and causing Aurore to laugh. "It's a fact. I have a stable job. I take care of myself. I'm my own person. Given all of those facts, I don't think you're much in a position to disagree."

"Then-" The second beep cut her off and I smiled in satisfaction.

"Ah, there's the last scan coding done. Hmm. What else could I do..." I trailed, putting my fingers under my chin as I looked at my jet. It had plenty of weapons. That was a given. The maneuverability systems were flawless. It was an absolute speed demon while being able to remain silent. Cloaking was installed. There's nothing else I could really put in it. Maybe it would come in handy sometime this year.

"Alright then. That's done," I said, not sparing the French girls a glance as I began to program my jet to continue its usual business before I began my work on it. It immediately took flight, catching their attention and causing them to go wide eyed when they saw it zoom off out of sight in a second while making no noise.

"Aren't those things supposed to be noisy?" Fleur asked.

"They're supposed to. But not my design. Noise is a no no," I said before thinking, _"Shit, now I'm stuck with nothing else to do."_

"Before I forget, I do want to thank you for warning us about what was happening at the Cup. Your French is surprisingly good," Aurore said, making me nod in her direction.

"Happy to help. And I know every non-wizarding language. Helps with the language barriers," I told her.

"Who are you?" Aurore asked, tilting her head at me. I jerked my thumb at her.

"Ask her. She knows," I said.

"I wanna hear it from you," Aurore said, making me raise an eyebrow. Her cheeks went slightly red once she realized her insinuation.

"Robert Morgan," I said. It felt good for me to say my name for once and have people immediately not know who I was.

"Aurore Velvite," the girl said in a proper tone.

"Believe me. Those type of tones don't impress me. They only annoy me. Do me the honor of talking to me like a human being," I told her, making her raise an eyebrow.

"You're rather eeccentric," Fleur said.

"Damn proud of it too. What about you?" I said, pointing to Aurore. "Fleur's not what she seems cause she willing entered herself into this tournament. That I can tell you right now." I tried not to smirk at the somewhat surprised look that took her face for less than a second.

"By that, do you mean am I just another pretty face with the lack of a brain? Well, no. I'd like to think I'm very smart," Aurore said haughtily.

"But stuck up at the best of times," I said, making her glare daggers at me. I couldn't hold back the grin this time. "What? I can tell." Fleur seemed to be holding back a laugh.

"Great. It's bad enough I hear it from her. Now I gotta hear it from you," Aurore said, jerking a thumb at Fleur. "You know, if you're trying to impress me, you're doing a piss poor job of it."

"Who says I'm trying to impress you?" I questioned with a raised brow.

"Then you're more eccentric than she thinks you are," Aurore said. I looked over at Fleur with a flat look.

"You know, your friend has a talent for proving people right about her," I told her, making an almost inaudible giggle sound from her as she put over a hand over her mouth to hide it. Then an understanding look came to Aurore's face.

"Ah. You're trying to impress her," Aurore said, jerking a thumb towards Fleur. "Now it's making sense."

"Not trying to impress her either. I state facts. If the facts happen to be hilarious to her, then hey. It just happens," I said with an unaffected shrug.

"Ok, what really is with you? You haven't drooled once upon looking at her. You're not making a fool of yourself trying to impress her. You haven't even stared not one second longer than you would at a normal person. What, does your body not know she's part Veela?" Aurore said, making Fleur elbow her.

"No, it knows. But unlike most people, a pretty face does not impress me. So allure is virtually redundant against me. Trust me. Women with pretty faces have tried to rob me more than once. Each and every time, I had no problem breaking their fingers for doing so. Questions?" I asked with a raised brow, making Aurore and Fleur stay silent. "Thought so."

"So what, do you..." Aurore said, imitating swinging a bat. It was in the style of a Beater's Bat, so that expression existed in the wizarding world too.

"No, I don't bat for the other team. Like you said, I'm eccentric. I'm not here to impress anyone. I'm here to do what the hell I do," I said.

"Are you trying for the badass angle?" Aurore asked, making me roll my neck in exasperation. "Cause it's working." I then raised an eyebrow.

"I confess myself... mildly empressed," Fleur said, making me smile genuinely for the first time. I could tell she was halfway lying when she said that. She was trying to make herself look better.

"You're not the only ones. I suppose we can achieve a start as acquaintances and work our way to friends. I'd offer a seat, but we're outside," I said dryly.

"There's a such thing as cleaning charms," Aurore said, forcing Fleur down to the ground. She then glared at her friend while I shook my head.

"Her ass thanks you very much for being gentle with it," I said dryly, making Aurore laugh.

"Crude, but very accurate," Fleur said, staring at me. I simply nodded.

"Speaking of your nodding, why aren't you wearing that sort of cowboy look you were wearing when you were at the cup?" Aurore asked.

"That was just a fun little outfit I had made. It's something different than the usual trench coat and combat pants," I told her.

"That's normal attire for you?" Aurore asked, looking at me up and down. Fleur was also looking at me strangely.

"Yes. I like the look. Sort of mercenary-ish. Pretty cool to me. And considering..." I said, summoning a knife to my hand. "...that I have access to more weapons than the US dropped on the Taliban, it fits." They then watched me as I began to idly twirl the knife between my fingers.

"How did you do that?" Fleur asked.

"Technology. Believe me, it's not all light bulbs and metal anymore like Muggle Studies seems to suggest. It's a lot more complicated. If you're wondering, that jet was not the result of any magic. It's all technology," I told her, making the both of them look at me curiously.

"Explain," Fleur said, her interest seemingly peaked for the first time. I then summoned a simple .45 to my hands and held it my hand for them to see.

"In Muggle Studies, this is the only gun that they know of, right?" I questioned. But it was actually rhetorical in my case. I knew it was.

"Yes," Aurore said. Then I made it disappear and summoned two different pistols with one having a scope. They seemed mildly impressed by the flawless shiny silver.

"Well guess what? So is this," I said, pulling the midsection of each gun. The grip of the scoped gun disappeared and was replaced with a hole in the back. I then pushed the other gun in the hole and the two pistols sealed with a magnetic lock, resounding with a soft, but not indistinguishable clanking sound to show that the rounds had changed.. "Voila. It's now a sniper rifle. That's modern gun tech now."

"Sniper rifle?" Aurore asked, making me shake my head.

"Oh, Jesus Christ on a crutch... I may just take up the Muggle Studies position just to avoid the cringe of talking to wizards and witches about our tech. Those simple pistols aren't the only thing we have anymore. We have shotguns. Assault rifles. Sniper rifles. Sub-machine guns. Things of the sort. Different uses for different situations," I explained, making the gun disappear. "Trust me. If you were to take the stuff they teach you in Muggle Studies and actually take it in the Muggle world, you'd look like an absolute dumbass. And I would prefer if you didn't."

"Apparently. Maybe I should hire you to tutor me," Aurore said. I was about to speak, but then I spotted someone behind the two French girls.

"Friend of yours?" I asked them. The both of them turned and spotted one of the Beaubaxtons students heading towards us. Unlike most of them, this one was male.

 _"Acel. Is there something pressing?"_ Fleur asked him in French.

 _"Yes. The champions are to arrive for the wand weighing, and you are not there,"_ he said.

"I was not aware of this. Lead the way," Fleur said, looking to me. "What about Monsieur?"

 _"They said all of the champions, and he is technically a champion,"_ he said, looking at me with minor distaste. I promptly flipped him off, making Aurore shake her head. But I think it was to hold back a laugh more than anything.

 _"Very well then,"_ Fleur said, before turning to me and speaking in English. "The champions must be present to some event. Shall we go?"

"We shall," I said, getting to my feet. "Check for grass stains."

"Scorugify," Aurore said, pointing at Fleur's butt. The image was mildly amusing, but I didn't say anything. "Now go. I need my tutor." I chuckled as Fleur shook her head at her friend.

"Aurore does too much sometimes," Fleur said.

"I noticed. She's very amusing," I said in a humored tone.

"She 'asn't started with you yet," Fleur warned me.

"And it'll still be hilarious. Probably even more so. I suppose she'll start nabbing my food and giving me puppy dog eyes right after within the next few days," I said, making Fleur chuckle.

"I wouldn't put eet past 'er to do so," she said, before looking at me. "You're definitely very interesting."

"You as well. Perhaps I may have misjudged you initially, but you have to understand that you didn't exactly give me the best first impression," I told her.

"Eet is fine. I suppose in a way I was... 'appy you mentioned eet to me," Fleur said.

"Happy?" I questioned.

"Eet very much proved zat some people in zis world are above not keeping silent when zey see someone zey like being treated rudely by a stranger. No matter 'ow attractive ze stranger happens to be. That freckled boy you were with..."

"Don't even mention him. My mood'll just sour," I told her.

"Ah. I shall... make note of zat," Fleur said.

"But I do want to know why you did act like that. You seem nothing like the person I thought you were initially," I said.

"Ze rude attitude is a... mask for lack of a better word," Fleur said, making me nod in understanding.

"The bad attitude it a bit of a deterrent for undesired suitors, yes?" I questioned.

"Correct. Excellent guess. Ze mask is unnecessary at Beaubaxtons. Everyone knows 'ow I function. For zese... Eenglishmen, eet is," Fleur said.

"Given some of the looks that I saw people at my table giving you when you first arrived, I'm not exactly surprised. I prefer telling them to just kindly hit the road and don't come back, but that's just me," I said, shrugging.

"Really?" Fleur asked.

"God, no! People staring isn't exactly an out of place thing for me, being a Muggle and all. No, I just either glare at them or make a threat or two. They usually turn back around," I told her.

"Zat sounds more like you," Fleur said.

"Oh, and you reckon you've profiled me already?" I asked with a raised brow.

"Eet was simply a guess," Fleur said.

"Not a bad guess," I said as we entered the building. The Acel guy didn't even spare me a glance as he walked away.

"Dick," I said, opening the door for Fleur.

"You certainly don't 'old back concerning language," she told me somewhat dryly.

"The only reason I do so in front of the teachers is to not try and suggest disrespect. Otherwise, they'd hear my filthy mouth a lot more," I told him as we walked to the rest of the champions. Every other champion was already here. Including Harry. Harry looked at me with a curious look when I walked in with Fleur, but I gestured a placating hand towards him that basically said that I would explain later.

"And there are champions four and five!" Bagman exclaimed, looking excited. "Mr. Morgan, your presence here isn't for the more technical side of things. Rather, it's for this piece Ms. Skeeter is doing for the Prophet..."

"In that case, goodbye," I said, immediately moving towards the door.

"Hold on, hold on," Bagman quickly said, making me stop to look at him. "You're not going to stay for it?"

"I don't trust that reporter as far as I can throw her. And as much as I would like to find out how far, I have more control that that. However, I since I don't trust her around Harry, I'll stay," I said, glaring daggers at Rita Skeeter while walking back to my previous position. Given the report she did on the Ministry after the World Cup, I had every reason to believe she was a blood sucking sycophant.

"Well, aren't you simply a charmer," Rita said, her tone sickly sweet.

"Says the woman who has all the flair of a bloody battle axe," I said, eyeing her appearance distastefully before turning to Bagman. "Please, make this quick."

"Actually, I wonder if I can have a little word with Harry before we start?" Rita said to Bagman while still staring at Harry. I had the strangest feeling that I would always look at this woman like she was an annoying fly you couldn't swat. "The youngest champion, you know... to add a bit of color?"

"Certainly!" Bagman cried. "That is, if Harry has no objection."

"Due to the fact that -"

"Lovely," Rita said, immediately grabbing Harry's arm. I looked to the side while chuckling. Bad idea.

Harry, like I expected him to do, took Rita's sudden grab of his arm as if it were a threat to himself. So he promptly flipped her over on her back painfully. I couldn't stop myself from roaring with laughter as I saw Rita struggle to regain composure and get back to her feet. Everyone stared at me, but like I gave a damn.

"Glad to see your reflexes haven't dulled," I said, patting him on the back in a proud manner. Harry only grinned.

"If anything, I think they've only gotten sharper," Harry said before looking at Skeeter. "Oh, terribly sorry Rita. Reflexes, you know." I only grinned wider and even Cedric as well as Fleur seemed to be fighting back grins. That was due to how very insincere Harry managed to sound.

"That's alright Harry," Rita said, managing to get to her feet while straightening her glasses. "Thought I suppose... we can skip that interview..."

"Excellent. Let's continue then," I said happily as we followed Bagman into a different room. All five of the judges were sitting at a table while I sat myself in a corner. One that was opposite to the one that Rita was sitting at. I eyed the Quick-Quotes Quill she pulled out as she put it on the parchment.

"May I introduce Mr. Ollivander?" Dumbledore said. "He will be checking your wands to ensure that they are in good condition before the tournament."

I looked at Ollivander, and nodded in satisfaction. He was a pretty ok man in his own right. Slightly eerie, but that came with knowing more about wand magic than perhaps anyone. Probably.

"Mademoiselle Delacour, could we have you first, please?" Ollivander said, stepping into the empty space in the middle of the room.

Fleur swept over to Ollivander and handed him her wand.

He twirled the wand between his long fingers like a baton and it emitted a number of pink and gold sparks. Then he held it chose to his eyes and examined it carefully.

"Yes," he said quietly, "nine and a half inches... inflexible... rosewood... and containing... dear me..."

"An 'air from ze 'ead of a veela," Fleur said. "One of my grandmuzzer's." A slightly interested look formed on my face. Her grandmother gave her the core for her wand? That was certainly uncommon. Then again, it wasn't exactly common for people to have Veela blood.

"Yes," Ollivander said. "Yes, I've never used veela hair myself, of course. I find it makes for rather temperamental wands... however, to each his own, and if this suits you..."

Ollivander ran his fingers along the wand, apparently checking for scratches or bumps; then he muttered, "Orchideous!" and a bunch of flowers burst from the wand tip.

"Very well, very well, it's in fine working order," Ollivander said, scooping up the flowers and handing them to Fleur with her wand. "Mr. Diggory, you next."

Fleur went back to her seat before glancing at me. I politely nodded at her before going back to Ollivander. Then again, there was the uneasy feeling that I would be the only one going into the first task without any sort of tool to help me. I did my best to try and stay calm. Best not go back to that thinking. At least right now.

"Ah, now, this is one of mine, isn't it?" Ollivander said with much more enthusiasm as Cedric handed over his wand. "Yes, I remember it well. Containing a single hair from the tail of a particularly fine male unicorn... must have been seventeen hands; nearly gored me with his horn after I plucked his tail. Twelve and a quarter inches... ash... pleasantly springy. It's in fine condition... You treat it regularly?"

"Polished it last night," Cedric said while grinning. I looked over to Harry, who smiled while waving his wand from side to side. I smiled. The nanites that were on his wand kept it clean without needing his services. Minor bonus to being able to keep his wand on him at all times, but certainly useful.

Ollivander sent a stream of silver smoke rings across the room from the tip of Cedric's wand, pronounced himself satisfied, and then said, "Mr. Krum, if you please."

Viktor Krum got up and slouched toward Ollivander. He thrust out his wand and stood scowling, with his hands in the pockets of his robes.

"Hmm..." Ollivander said, "This is a Gregorovitch creation, unless I'm much mistaken? A fine wand-maker, though the styling is never quite what I... however..."

He lifted the wand and examined it minutely, turning it over and over before his eyes.

"Yes... hornbeam and dragon heartstring?" he shot at Krum, who nodded. "Rather thicker than one usually sees... quite rigid... ten and a quarter inches... Avis!"

The hornbeam wand let off a blast like a gun, and a number of small, twittering birds flew out of the end and through the open window.

"Good," Ollivander said, handing Krum back his wand. "Which leaves... Mr. Potter."

Harry got to his feet and walked past Krum to Ollivander. He handed over his wand.

"Aaaah, yes," said Mr. Ollivander, his pale eyes suddenly gleaming. "Yes, yes, yes. How well I remember."

I frowned. There was something mysterious about the way he talked about Harry's wand. More mysterious than usual, really. It's something that I don't recall Harry ever mentioning to me. There was something about his wand that I think didn't know.

Ollivander spent much longer examining Harry's wand than anyone else's. Eventually, however, he made a fountain of wine shoot out of it, and handed it back to Harry, announcing that it was still in perfect condition.

"Thank you all," Dumbledore said, standing up at the judges' table. "You may go back to your lessons now - or perhaps it would be quicker just to go down to dinner, as they are about to end -"

"Glorious," I said dryly as I leaned from up off the wall. But then the man with the black camera jumped up with a clear of his throat.

"Photos, Dumbledore, photos!" Bagman cried excitedly. "All the judges and champions, what do you think, Rita?"

"Er - yes, let's do those first," Rita said, whose eyes were upon Harry again. "And then perhaps some individual shots." I sighed, but I guess I could do it. I had the strangest feeling that I was going to regret this decision. I hated the fact that I was right.

Never before had I been part of a shoot that took such a long time. Madame Maxime cast everyone into shadow no matter where she stood, so we eventually decided on making her sit down. Then the photographer wanted to get Fleur at the front, but Rita wanted to get Harry in the front.

"In the name of all that is holy, I have never wanted to rip my hair out more than I do right now," I said, pounding my fists on my forehead.

"You are definitely not the only one," Cedric muttered, his expression rather grim.

"How about we just go with Rita's suggestion for the individual shots?!" I exclaimed, getting rather tired of this. I would rather avoid mentioning the woman at all, but I was tired of this crap.

"Yes, yes. That sounds like the best course of action," Dumbledore said. As soon as me and Harry had our photos taken, we immediately left out of the room as fast as we could. Never have I wanted to leave a room faster than that.

"Holy fuck. I was about to go insane in there," I told Harry as we walked out.

"Yeah, me too. Anyway, where'd you go after you stormed out of Snape's class?" he asked me.

"Went to go finish the jet, ended up getting in a conversation with Fleur and Aurore, the girl we met in the forest. Both of whom were much more pleasant than you would think," I told him.

"What, do you need more female company now?" Harry teased, but I paid it no mind.

"How's Hermione?" I asked, my tone concerned. His grin disappeared and was replaced with an expression more solemn.

"She thinks you're angry at her," Harry said.

"I'm not. I'm just... stressed. This tournament has got me upset. I just snapped at her because she reminded me about the task when I wanted to do anything other than focus on it. Hell, I'd rather stare at Malfoy's badges than think about it," I explained. "I definitely owe her an apology. I'm just worried. I mean, between basilisks, Dementors... this shit stacks on you, you know?"

"Yeah. It has an overall effect from every threat with death you have. I've noticed it. Kind of thought you'd be used to it though," Harry asked.

"This is something different. Not only do I have more to worry about than just myself, but going into the unknown is dangerous. No matter what situation it is. But not only is this a situation of the unknown, but it's also a situation of magic. Given the circumstances, I may not be able to complete the tasks at all. And I might die because of it," I explained. "But hey. Better dead than soulless."

"Neither option is very excellent, but you're right," Harry said, stuffing his hands in his pockets. "You reckon we ought to go down to dinner?"

"Yeah. May as well. I'm ready for more cold shoulders that'll just annoy me," I said. Then the both of us went towards the entrance Hall. I immediately spotted Hermione, but I also spotted Ron next to her. Regardless of my distaste for him, there was an apology that needed to happen. One to an actual friend. So I opted for sitting in front of her while gently tapping her shin with my foot to get her attention.

"Hey," I said, pointedly ignoring Ron.

"Hey," Hermione said, sticking her fork into her steak and kidney pie.

"Look, I'm sorry about what happened in Potions. It's just..."

"You're worried," Hermione finished, making me nod. "I understand that. I kind of figured it out a few minutes ago as I was thinking about it. You weren't mad at me. You were just upset that I made you think about it again."

"And this is why you're the brightest witch of your age," I said with a grin. "But yeah. I'll try to get a lid on things. It gets hard sometimes, you know? When everything is happening at once and you can't do a thing to stop it?"

"Felt like that when we had to deal with the Chamber of Secrets," Hermione said. "Being petrified isn't exactly gratifying when you realized you just lost an extended period of your life."

"Heh. I didn't live a life for about three years. Not until Harry came along, at least. It was always duty. To protect, serve, and kill. That's a bonus to the duty of protecting and serving," I said, making Harry laugh and Hermione roll her eyes.

"Who knows?" Ron suddenly said, making me snap my head to him. "That'll probably help you in the tournament." I tightened my fists while they were positioned in my lap, but I gave no outside reaction. I promised Hermione I would try to control my more extreme reactions to the tournament.

"Fat lot of good that'll do him when he can't do magic considering this is a Tri _wizard_ Tournament," Harry bit at Ron.

"Forget it. He doesn't understand. He doesn't even listen," I said as I began to pile food onto my plate. Ron seemed to have no response to that as he went back to his own food. There was an awkward silence as we ate. Him just sitting here felt like a sick reminder of the fact that he was supposed to believe us, and he didn't.


	10. Chapter 10 - Dark and Light Moods

"Harry, you still have your Gringotts key, right?" I asked with a type of deadly calm in my voice not unlike Snape. But he was also the same person who gave me detention until Christmas. I guess even he had a little bit of a heart. If he didn't, I most likely would've been serving it until the year was over.

"Yeah... why?" Harry asked.

"Because you're going to need some serious Galleons to bail me out of Azkaban once I murder a reporter bitch with an ostrich neck," I said, immediately getting to my feet. Both Harry and and Hermione grabbed my arms, and reluctantly, I sat back down.

"Are you kidding me? You gave her no fucking interview and she turns it into this!" I exclaimed, poinitng at the paper. "This bullshit account of you still crying over your parents and that this tournament isn't a big deal cause they're 'watching over you.' This may be just me, but I find that insulting. To not only you, but the mother and father who died to save their child. Lemme just..." I had to take several deep breaths.

"I honestly don't give a damn about what Skeeter printed. I expected you to be more upset over the other article," Harry said, making me stop in my paced breathing to look at him sharply.

"I'm almost afraid to ask. What other article?" I asked.

"You know Bagman spilled about you being my ward to Rita, right?" Harry asked, making my eyes widen.

"What?" I said, my tone formed into a type of hard disbelief. I didn't exactly make it known that I wanted to make it a secret, it was something I wouldn't have liked to announce to the world.

"Turn about five pages over," Harry said. I immediately did that.

"'Robert Morgan - Guardian or Bad Example?'" I read aloud. "Holy fuck, I'm already disgusted."

"'As many people know the presence of Robert Morgan at Hogwarts happened three years ago when, from some twist of fate, was not affected by the centuries old charms made for repelling Muggles like him. As to why this happened, we can only speculate, but there are more pressing matters.'"

"Due to some information from a Ministry member working with the tournament, he mentioned to me that Robert Morgan let slip that he was Harry Potter's ward due to his outrage of finding out that he was forced to compete in this tournament.' Well thank fuck she at least got that part right. Maybe it'll shut some people up."

"However, there is the possibility that this is an act. Earlier reports accounting for Harry's Potter's place of residence were unaccounted for, and they still remain unknown today. This is possibly due to Mr. Morgan's desire for no one to know what goes on behind the scenes of his home.' Oh, God. I can already tell I'm not going to like this."

"From the interview of multiple students, several reported Mr. Potter dressed in rather baggy clothes upon his introduction into Hogwarts.' She better not go there. I dare her to go there..."

"Over the course of Christmas vacation, he did not stay within the castle grounds for the holidays, and this was immediately fixed. However, could this have an attempt to avoid raising suspicion? Given Mr. Potter's earlier, and rather concerning thin state in his first year, it is entirely possible that-"

I immediately stopped. I had no choice because, with an unconscious jerk of the hands, I tore the paper right in half. The look on my face was murderous. I was staring forward, but for everything I could see, I might as well should've been staring at blood.

"Robert..."

"I'm trying everything I have to stay calm. It's not helping me very much because I do not want to be calm. That vile piece of trash..." I growled, my tone making me sound like more monster than man. "...is suggesting that I was to blame for how Harry looked. She assumed that I wasn't taking care of him and was neglecting him. I enjoy putting fuckers like those in the ground. In pieces. And she... argh!"

I slammed my fists on the table hard, startling every student that was at our table while knocking off food, plates, and cutlery in the process. I didn't even spare them a glance. I was way too pissed off to even care.

"She better not come back. I want her to come back here. If she does, and I catch her..." The vicious look on my face was replaced with something more sinister. Laughter. I just began to laugh like I was the Joker's cousin. The look on my face looked very much mad. Not angry mad, but insane mad.

"Calm down. You're beginning to scare the crap out of me," Hermione said, making my laugh subside to chuckles. "Stop. I think I'd prefer Angry Robert at this point. We'll get this sorted out."

"Oh, we're definitely going to get this sorted out. Right. Now," I growled, getting up from my seat angry. I then snatched the paper from the hands of a Ravenclaw. I ignored their exclamation for me to return. I ended up passing Fleur and Aurore out of the corner of my eye, but I didn't pay attention to them. I let the angry look on my face explain everything.

"I need to discuss something with you," I immediately told Dumbledore, my tone not shifting from anger. I got several stares from multiple teachers, but again, I ignored them.

"Yes?" he asked.

"Read this," I said, handing him the article. His eyes skimmed over it before looking back at me, his look unnaturally serious. The twinkle that was normally in his eyes was not there. It seemed he read in between the thinly veiled lines like I had.

"Albus?" McGonagall asked, looking over at Dumbledore when she saw the expression on his face.

"Minvera, do me a favor and owl Rita Skeeter back here. There's something rather... pressing we need to discuss," Dumbledore said in his regular calm and polite tone. But there was one little detail. He spoke lower than normal. It might be seen as this insignificant detail to most, but I was smarter than that. Low tones were often deadly tones. Dumbledore was far from happy from what he saw. Not as visually angry as I was, but rather... passive aggressive. Coming from this man, it was enough.

"If you want that foul piece of trash to avoid getting hurt, you better not put me in the same room with her. You better bind me, keep me out of the room, whatever. Cause I'm not going to be civil about this," I growled, tapping a furious finger on the paper.

"Severus, please make Mr. Morgan some of your strongest Calming Draughts. With this bit of news, he is going to need it. I shall rebuy the ingreidents myself," Dumbledore said. Snape nodded and gestured for me to follow him. He didn't say a word as we walked to his office while I was still fuming from the article. He didn't speak at all until he started inserting ingredients into a cauldron.

"Do you plan on making this a reoccuring thing?" he questioned.

"Hopefully not. I want to be able to stay calm without needing potions. Because the main problem is that I really don't want to stay calm," I told him.

"Judging from Dumbledore's actions, something rather... displeasurable happened?" Snape asked.

"You could say that," I said, my snarl still on my face. "Do you have a copy of the Prophet?"

He pointed a long finger at his desk, and the copy was still there in its unrolled form.

"Around the waiting period for the Draught, read page nine. You'll see why I'm pissed off," I said, gripping my hands tightly.

"Skeeter writes slandering articles about she doesn't remotely like all the time," Snape said calmly as he began to heat the cauldron.

"This goes beyond slander. We need a new word, because this is astronomically infuriating. I was serious about what I said about Skeeter. I see that woman, I'm going to punch first and then once I feel she's bleeding enough, I'll force her to retract that article. How dare that woman..." I said, my nails beginning to dig into my palms.

"Grip this," Snape said, handing me a disregarded quill he transfigured into a brick. I then held the brick as tightly as I could with my left hand. Seconds later, the brick broke in my hands. Snape looked back up after hearing the crack before sighing.

"Should've charmed it," he said idly.

"First the tournament, and now this pathetic excuse for a human being. How much more crap do I have to deal with this year? I swear, I wanna find whoever put my name in that goblet SO bad. I could use him to deal with my more violent urges," I said, making Snape look at me with a raised eyebrow.

"You rely on torture to remove your violent feelings?" he asked.

"Not normally. Usually I invent, talk to Harry, get some combat or shooting practice, Quidditch, things of that nature. Since that asshole is trying to kill us by putting us in this tournament in the first place, I'd say he deserves to die a slow, painful death. And I'm more than happy to provide it," I said darkly.

"You need more than a Calming Draught. You need therapy," Snape told me.

"You're about four years too late for that," I said, tapping the desk impatiently.

"Stop that," he told me.

"I need something to distract myself. I can't hit anything cause I don't want to break your stuff. I have nothing to grip. And I am filled to the brim pissed the fuck off with no way to healthily disperse it," I told him.

"And you reckon beating the reporter who wrote the article is healthy?" Snape retorted evenly.

"Read the article. I'd say it's a logical reaction. You'd be upset too if you were me," I told him.

"You should really employ Occlumency more," Snape told me.

"I should, but I don't think about it. I just think about how pissed off I am," I told him.

"And that's the perfect time to think about it," Snape told me before pausing. "Alright, let me see about this article you're fuming over."

I was silent the entire time Snape ran his eyes over the article. His eyes never left the paper other than to stir the potion a few times. After he finished, he set the article down calmly. But I could see that his face formed into a displeased sneer before burning the paper wordlessly with a wave of his wand.

 _"That_ is worth causing pain over," he said.

"Told you," I said.

"If you do end up get arrested for beating her near to death, I'm willing to ignore the fact that you did not show up to my detentions," Snape said dryly, making me snort. That sentence cheered me up a little.

"Thanks. But hopefully this Draught calms me down. I'm trying to use Occlumency now, but I think I let the idea stew too long. I can't get control of my emotions," I told him.

"This Draught should help. It's much more powerful that your average one. For you, it's necessary," Snape said, adding more ingredients to the potion.

"You think it can calm me down to the point where I'm in a coma?" I questioned.

"That would require a lot more armadillo bile," Snape said. I only threw my head back.

After about a few more minutes, he gave me a cup full of the liquid. I downed the whole thing in seconds before slamming it on the table. I immediately felt my body relax more as well as my attitude, but I could still feel a little prickling of anger buzzing in my skull. I could live with that.

"Better?" Snape questioned.

"Better," I confirmed with a nod.

"Skeeter better be glad it did," Snape said.

"No, I'm still going to hurt her. Bones will break. I'm just going to hurt her a little bit less. Plus my body feels calmer, so I can relax a little," I told him.

"Then drink again," Snape told me.

"I thought you said it's worth causing pain over?" I questioned.

"Does not mean you should do it. As entertaining as it would be to see, you shouldn't," Snape told me, making me sigh. He was right. So I ladled more of the Calming Draught into my cup and drunk from it again. The buzzing anger began to dull to the point where I could barely feel my anger.

"Ok, it's a lot better. Hopefully if I do see her, I won't get set off all over again. That would make this rather redundant," I said.

"Quite. Besides the violence, what do you reckon you'll do once you see here?" Snape asked.

"Probably cuss that heifer out so bad, the ball in the back of my throat is gonna get sore. If she's lucky, I won't do much at all. The students are in for a show if this happens outside," I said in a slightly moody tone. "But if Dumbledore takes care of this situation, I won't even have to face her. However, I give no promises for what happens if she comes back on these grounds again. By then, this Draught will have worn off. And then I _will_ go ape shit."

"You're not helping your situation by beating reporters," Snape told me.

"It'll make me feel a hell of a lot better though. Christ, I just wish people would leave me in peace. Then again, I've been on the ass end of Fate's fortune ever since I was thirteen. Parents die. I lose all of my family. I lived a pathetic shitty life of being nothing but a law breaking 'hero.' I use the term loosely. Some part of me wishes I was in that car with my parents. Maybe life wouldn't suck so bad," I said in a moody tone while looking down at the desk under me.

"And where would Mr. Potter be now if you didn't?" Snape asked subtly, making me sigh.

"Point is well taken. Still. Just wish life could be better for me. Peaceful. For once," I said.

"I learned a long time ago that some people in the world may never find peace," Snape said, making my face form into a grim line.

"Isn't that the truth? Still, doesn't make it right for someone who's done good things. No matter people may think of my rather violent side, I am a good person. People just bring out my unpleasant side over and over and over again. They can judge all they want, but if they know the things I've seen, what I've been through... trust me, they wouldn't judge," I explained before shaking my head. "Sorry, I'm ranting. I tend to get like this sometimes."

"It's better to get it out like this than angrily and violently," Snape told me.

"Debatable. At least when you do it that way, people pay attention," I told him.

"That is unfortunately true," Snape said before covering the Draught with a lid. "Take a walk around the castle. Come back if you're starting to get angry again."

"My senses are a bit dulled right now cause of that Draught, so it's kind of hard for me to feel much of anything right now other than depression," I told him.

"Maybe that dosage was a little too much. If necessary, have Flitwick cast a Cheering Charm on you. It should dull the more depressing side effects," Snape said.

"Will do. Thanks Severus," I told him.

"Professor," Snape corrected. I actually smiled a little.

"Ok, Pro-fes-sor," I said, breaking the word up purposefully. I then walked out, my spirits somewhat higher. Snape wasn't half bad at cheering people up. At least in my case.

I decided to go ahead and take Snape's suggestion to walk. I walked for what felt like hours rather than minutes. I felt just... here at the moment. Like I was a ghost; more observing than actually living. Then I felt the buzz of my phone in my pocket. My phone automatically teleported to my pocket when it was ringing, so it helped for avoiding missing calls.

"Hello?" I asked.

 _"Where are you?"_ Harry asked over the other line.

"Walking. Trying to calm down," I said.

 _"Is it working?"_ Harry asked.

"I don't feel as angry as I did before, so yeah. Though that could be the doses of Calming Draught I just had," I said.

 _"That's good, at the very least. What are you doing to do about what Skeeter wrote?"_ Harry asked.

"Hopefully I won't have to do anything. Dumbledore didn't look too happy about it when I showed him, so hopefully this'll all work out," I told him.

 _"Dumbledore knows how to work magic in these kinds of situations,"_ Harry said, his tone light. _"No pun intended."_

"Yeah, but hopefully he knows how to deal with a snake like Skeeter. If not, I will. And she will regret what she wrote if it comes to that. Every time I see her, she'll be spending all of her time visiting Madam Pomfrey," I said darkly.

 _"Actually, I have a better idea. That is, if Dumbledore doesn't contain this. Depending on how well I do on the first task, there may be something I can exploit. Under normal circumstances I hate using my fame, but I hate Skeeter even more now,"_ Harry said, making me raise an eyebrow.

"Go on," I asked, my tone curious.

 _"Given that I have 'The Boy Who Lived' bullshit as well as being a Triwizard Champion, who's to say I can't use that to drag Skeeter's name through the mud?"_ Harry questioned, making me grin.

"I like the sound of this. We get another reporter, give him an interview, and make Skeeter look like a plum fool. Given to how people are willing to believe anything if it's simply printed, honesty does not have to be taken into account. Much, at least. We'll need more than just our statements, however," I told him.

 _"Already thought of that. I've already made a request in for the police reports involving the Dursleys. I asked Hermione's parents, and they're fine with receiving the reports through their post and sending them our way through owl,"_ Harry said, making me smile pridefully.

"Congrats Harry. You have officially become a snake in a lion's mane," I told him.

 _"Why thank you. I'm certainly more Slytherin than Malfoy. And I'm a bloody Gryffindor. Trust me. We'll make the bitch pay for that article,"_ Harry said in an angry tone. _"You're not the only one who was pissed off after seeing that article."_

"You did a damn good job of hiding it," I told him.

 _"Thank Hermione for that. That's the only reason I didn't blow my top,"_ Harry said, making me smile.

"Oh, I didn't realize it was like _that,"_ I said with a teasing tone.

 _"Shut up,"_ Harry said after a brief pause. I could tell his face was red. _"Anyway, do you think you can survive that long?"_

"With the promise of vengeance that's in store for Skeeter, I'll be more than fine. If this goes as well as I'm hoping, she won't ever have a job as far as reporting goes ever again. I'm loads happier now," I said with a bright smile.

 _"I thought that would cheer you up. I'm glad I was right. Everything's all set up except for the reporter to call. Hopefully, if the first task goes well, it'll go over even smoother. I know Skeeter'll be there for the first task, but so will our man. Or woman. I wasn't privy as to which. We'll give them the interview that they're looking for right in front of some people. We'll have the reports with us, a copy of the the article she wrote, and give our statements. If he or she knows how to make it sound as twisted as possible, it'll be glorious,"_ Harry explained with an evil laugh.

"I've taught you well. I'm going to start crying tears of joy," I said with a wide grin.

 _"Don't. Doesn't help your image,"_ Harry said, his grin showing through his voice. _"Survive until the first task. If Dumbledore doesn't get her, we will."_

"I welcome the day. This is so much better than hurting her. You see, bullet wounds and broken bones will eventually heal. But incriminating statements along with the right reporter? If not retracted, that kind of damage will never be repaired. It's something so... me. Something truly beautiful is happening to you..." I said in a mock tearful voice.

 _"Yeah, I'm becoming more like you. Hopefully, this doesn't lead to anything serious happens while this article is up,"_ Harry said.

"Yeah. Like me getting arrested. I really don't want to have to embarrass the Department of Law Enforcement by beating their asses and escaping," I told him. "Hopefully, people have brain cells that do not consist of a single digit and won't believe the article. The Slytherins'll probably give me flak for it because they're a bunch of jackasses. Hopefully, the other Houses'll have more sense."

 _"Also, you've seemingly made some French friends. They saw you when you stormed up to Dumbledore, and after looking at the article, they can see why you're upset,"_ Harry said.

"Where are they now?" I asked.

 _"Think they said something about going back to their carriage,"_ Harry said as I stopped and looked up where I knew Dumbledore's office was. I then summoned my grapple gun.

"If you see em, tell em I'll talk to them later. Right now, I have something to take care of. See ya Harry," I said as I fired the gun.

 _"See ya,"_ he said, ending the call. The gun propelled me up to where I was hanging in front of Dumbledore's window. Using one hand, I opened the window and swung myself inside before making the gun disappear. A rather savage smile crossed my face as I looked at Rita Skeeter standing in front of Dumbledore's desk. Oh, this was perfect.

"Well, well. What do we have here?" I said with a humored tone that had a dark level to it.

"Um..." A more worried look crossed her face when she saw the expression on my face. "On second thought Dumbledore, I think I ought to..."

"Oh, no," I said, forcing her to sit in a chair. "You're going to sit right here and let Dumbledore tell you what you are going to do. Because your second option is me, and if it weren't for Snape giving me those doses of Calming Draught, I'd be sending you to Madam Pomfrey for the next few weeks. Sit. Listen. Do. Because unlike the other names you've dragged through the mud, I have no problem making you hurt. Physically, mentally, and emotionally," I finished before nodding at Dumbledore. "She's yours."

"I see you're noticing he's not happy about the article you wrote," Dumbledore said rather evenly.

"I was just-" I held up a hand to stop her as I walked around to face her.

"Your duty is report the truth, NOT salacious stories made to make yourself look good. I'll tell you right now. I refuse to let you get away with that," I said before shaking my head. "Continue Dumbledore."

"Rather than punish you for this, I'd much rather give you the truth of the situation. You will have your story and you will not point the finger at the wrong person," Dumbledore said, making me look at Dumbledore with a stunned look. I expected him to force him to make her retract the story and right an apology. Not... placate her.

"Then... what is the truth?" Rita said, her expression becoming interested while pulling out a notepad and her Quick-Quotes Quill.

"Not. That. Quill," I said with a deadly undertone. Rita immediately put it back in her bag while Dumbledore handed her a regular one. I only groaned before heading towards the window. This was a shorter visit than I expected to have. But before I left, I pointed at Skeeter.

"I'm going to warn you. You print anything less than the truth about anyone that I know, and I will carry out my first threat. Calming Draughts or no," I said before leaping out of the window. I landed on the ground hard, but I didn't feel any of the force due to the fluid layer in my boots absorbing all of the harm the fall would've done to me.

I rose to look straight ahead, and several Durmstrang students happened to be walking together. Judging by the slightly shocked look and their posture, they backed up when I landed near them.

"Sorry. I was too lazy to take the stairs," I said before beginning to walk off.

"Ve need to 'ave a vord vith you," one of the Durmstrang students said. I turned around to face them before stuffing my hands in my pockets.

"Alright, shoot," I said before tensing as they had drawn their wands. "Hey, hey. I didn't mean literally."

"Ve are doing you a favor. If you are literally unable to compete, the contract should not affect you," one of them said. I frowned. Fucking liar. I didn't even need to watch his physical reaction to know that. That, or he was just incredibly stupid.

"That's not how it works," I told them. My words seemed to have no effect as I had to dodge three dark blue curses. "Fine then."

I drew my grapple gun and pulled as hard as I could to launch one of them in the air. I then jumped to meet his body, grabbed him by the throat, and slammed him down on the ground with my knees on his ribs. I heard several vicious cracks, but I didn't slow down. I then went over to the last two students before grabbing their wand hands and forcing them to bump heads.

I grabbed one of the students by the throat before socking him in the ribs twice, breaking both of the ones I aimed at before kicking him out of my grip, knocking him unconscious. Then, drawing a combat knife, I turned around to the last student, cut his wand in half with a swift cut before stabbing him in the knee.

He grunted in pain from the pain of it while being forced on one knee. I made the knife disappear before punching him in the face hard enough to break all the teeth on the right side of his face. He then tried to rise to his feet while spitting out several broken teeth. My response was to sock him in the back of the head to knock him unconscious.

"Bastards. It's not like I want to be in this stupid tournament," I said as I rubbed my wrists. I then grabbed two of them and put them on each of my shoulders before laying one across my neck.

"Not as beefy as your furs make you look," I said as I began to walk around to head into the castle. My first destination was Madam Pomfrey. The idea of leaving them unconscious here did cross my mind, but I wanted to make sure they got the story right. That they attacked me first and I defended myself. Viciously, but effectively.

I had to kick open the door to get it open once I reached her office, and she came out of a separate room, looking irritated.

"What is-" She immediately halted in her words before looking at me and the unconscious Durmstrang students I was holding. "Oh, great Merlin. Do you always have to send someone here every year?"

"Hey, at least it's not Malfoy this time," I said, putting them on beds.

"Yes. You've already done that one. He had to take Skel-Gro to get his teeth back, and the ribs took no time at all," Pomfrey said.

"He won't be the only one who's going to need Skel-Gro," I said as I laid the last Durmstrang student down.

"Did this one call one of your friends that word as well?" Madam Pomfrey said. It seemed she was just as disgusted by the use of the word as I was.

"No. They attacked me. They were under the impression that if I was literally unable to compete, that the contract wouldn't effect me," I said, shaking my head. "They're either lying or complete idiots. I would put money on the first. Guess Slytherin isn't the only one who has some bias in them."

"Apparently. I don't know how many people are going to have to learn the hard way that they're not going to beat you just because they can do magic and you can't," Madam Pomfrey said.

"A lot more, knowing my luck. It's ok. I'll make sure you keep busy," I said with a grin, making her roll her eyes.

"Charming. Very charming," Madam Pomfrey said dryly.

"Don't I know it?" I said with a grin.

"Yes, well anyway... have you seen the Prophet?" she asked, making my grin disappear.

"Uh huh. It's being dealt with. I have to say, if it weren't for Severus making me a Calming Draught, you'd be nursing Skeeter as well," I told her.

"What makes you think I would want to nurse her?" Madam Pomfrey said, making me grin. "Considering the way Mr. Potter looks at you with admiration, there's no possible way that what she said is true."

"Yes, but the outside world doesn't know that. I'd rather not have this lead to a more official clusterfuck," I said, making Madam Pomfrey shake her head.

"When you're upset, you sure have quite the language," she told me.

"I always talk like this. I just don't around you most of the time. Inform me once Karkaroff finds his students. I would like to talk to him," I told her.

"About what?" Madam Pomfrey asked me.

"That if he doesn't keep his students in line, they're going to keep getting hurt. I have to deal with this tournament unwillingly. I don't need these fools making matters worse," I told her.

"I'll do that for you," Pomfrey said, making me nod in a thankful fashion. Then I walked out.

And came face to face with Parkingson. I eyed her just as distastefully just as much as she eyed me.

"Great. Just what I needed," she said.

"I have no patience to be called a filthy Muggle. Move bitch," I said, purposefully bumping her shoulder hard as I passed her. For her saying what she said, that was a dick move, but I didn't care. The day I would stop being rude to a Slytherin was the day one was actually civil to me. I wasn't holding my breath on that happening.

* * *

Apparently, Skeeter knows how to move fast if you threaten her the right way. Within hours we got a copy of the new Prophet. I looked at it apprehensively, almost afraid of what I would be reading.

"You reckon she actually reported the truth?" Harry asked.

"I wouldn't hold my breath. One way to find out though," I said before glancing at the title. "'Dark Truths Brought To The Light.' Promising title. Let's see."

"'An apology goes out to Robert Morgan for the first article. It was a mistake printing a gut instinct in the paper-' More like defacement, but good enough. 'But I have the real answer to Mr. Potter's guardianship.'"

"'After Mr. Potter lost his parents, his only living relatives, his aunt and uncle took him in. Initially, this sounded like a sweet gesture. But I was proven gravely wrong when Headmaster Dumbledore approached me on the matter.'"

"'You see, they were in fact responsible for the numerous signs of neglect that were shown on Mr. Potter's body, given the evidence I viewed on a Muggle Auror report. Mr. Morgan had no knowledge of Mr. Potter's existence until his mission to sneak into Hogwarts. With excellent persuasion skills to coerce the truth from Mr. Potter, Mr. Morgan immediately acted; an act that was entirely not on his agenda when he arrived.' I'll give her one thing. She can either make you look really good or really bad."

"'His intention, upon learning this news, was to immediately act. Mr. Morgan is, to no witch or wizard's immediate knowledge, is actually quite rich and famous in the Muggle world. He is, essentially, the Harry Potter of the Muggle world.' Oh, sweet mother of God..."

"It's better than her dragging your name through the mud," Harry said.

"That's true, but I'm still cringing a little," I said before going back to the article. "'So, through his power, he got the this evil Muggle family arrested and took Mr. Potter into his own care. Regardless of his young age.'"

"'Given how Mr. Morgan is essentially, a very eligible bachelor, it is unknown why he took Mr. Potter into his care. It could not be because of his fame; we the people, only learned of his responsibility as Mr. Potter's guardian only recently due to his desire to remove him from the Tournament. I only see that Mr. Morgan cares for Mr. Potter as a father would his son, which isn't a common trait among the rich and famous. And it is more than likely Mr. Morgan will do whatever he can to protect Mr. Potter as much as he can during this Tournament.'"

"'Once again, you have my apologies Mr. Morgan. You protected one of the wizarding world's most iconic figures with selfless intentions. I would label you as a hero.' Ok, there isn't much left. I can put it down," I said, dropping the paper.

"Wasn't half bad though," Harry said, idly taking a bite of steak and kidney pie.

"Yes, but I cringed so hard on some of those lines. 'The Harry Potter of the Muggle world.' You serious?" I questioned, causing Hermione and Harry to snicker.

"Now that you mention it, it does sound kind of ridiculous," Hermione said, making me shake my head.

"You are both assholes," I said, rubbing my temples with my eyes closed. "At least the world doesn't think I abuse my child."

"Eet sounds weird when you say zat," I heard Fleur say. I snapped my eyes open to look straight at Fleur and Aurore.

"It's true though. He's essentially my dad," Harry said, jerking a thumb at me. I simply raised my goblet of pumpkin juice.

"Cheers," I said, taking a drink.

"Given that this happened three years ago, you were sixteen when you took responsibility over him," Aurore said.

"That's right," I told her.

"You're a lot older than your actual age," Aurore said.

"That makes a ton of sense," I said sarcastically before gesturing to some of the empty seats around her. "Take a seat. Does no good for you to stand."

"Ok," Aurore said before promptly sitting in my lap. Hermione and Harry tilted their heads at Aurore, looks of disbelief on their faces. I blinked at Aurore in a perplexed fashion. Fleur put a hand over her face and shook her head.

"You said take a seat," Aurore said in an unaffected tone.

"I didn't say on me," I said dryly.

"You didn't say I couldn't," Aurore said as she snatched a chunk of my chicken. I glared at her before she gave me puppy dog eyes. I then looked at Fleur.

"I should be the one teaching Divination, because this was absurdly accurate," I said, gesturing towards Aurore. Fleur only chuckled before taking a seat next to Hermione, who didn't exactly look thrilled.

"What?" Aurore said after swallowing the chunk of food she stole. "It's not like you don't enjoy having a lovely woman on your lap."

"No, cause you aren't doing anything but putting extra weight on my leg and snatching my food," I said, her only response being to shrug before looking at Fleur.

"Fleur, come join me. His leg is surprisingly comfy," Aurore said.

"Don't you dare," I said, glaring at Fleur. She raised her hands in surrender.

"I was not zinking of eet," she said, making me nod in satisfaction. Aurore groaned.

"You're no fun sometimes," she said, before looking over at some students who were staring at us. "What are you looking at? You act like you've never seen a public lap dance before?"

Hermione nearly choked on the pumpkin juice she put in her mouth while Harry clamped his mouth shut to avoid laughing. For the first time in what felt like ever, my cheeks burned. I haven't met anyone like this since... well, Tonks. I mentally slapped myself as I tried not to think about that.

"It's not a real lap dance unless you're half clothed or not clothed at all," I responded in a dry tone to relieve some of my embarrassment. Harry couldn't back his laughter anymore and immediately let loose. Aurore slapped me on the back of the head.

"Naughty boy," she said. But she was smirking. "I like it."

"Should we escort you two to somewhere more private? Just don't mind if we take a few photos," Fred and George suddenly said, coming up and holding their hands in a mock camera position.

"Oh, son of a taint," I said, shaking my head. "Aurore, go take a seat. An actual seat."

"You're telling me this isn't a seat?" Aurore said, wiggling her butt on my leg. Fred and George wolf whistled while Harry was in tears from laughing.

"No, it isn't. Please take a seat," I told her through gritted teeth.

"Please is the magic word," Aurore said, getting up to go sit next to Fleur.

"I told you she was too much sometimes," she told me.

"I regret not taking it seriously. This was something astronomical," I said before pointing at Aurore. "I underestimated you. I won't do so again."

"I'm counting on it," Aurore said with a wink before laughing. "Alright, I'm done with that. That was just fun. If I had done that to just about any guy in this Hall, I would've more than likely felt the front of their pants bulge."

"You're more than likely right. But we've discussed this already," I told her before looking at Fleur. "Can we get to a conversation more sane?"

"My pleasure. I see you got your article situated. I confess myself impressed yet again," Fleur said, making me shrug.

"Felt like something that had to be done at the time. Besides, it's worth it to take care of this knucklehead. Even if he does infuriate me," I said, smacking the back of his skull. "That's for laughing like a hyena."

"You tell me you wouldn't if she did the same to me?" Harry questioned rhetorically.

"That's not the point. You laughed. Therefore, I punish you," I told him, taking a bite of my chicken.

"Judging from what just happened a few minutes ago, shouldn't you be punishing her?" Harry said with a dirty smirk. This time, Aurore went red as Fred, George, and Harry howled with laughter. Hermione and Fleur looked embarrassed just sitting here. I punched him in the arm hard enough to hurt him.

"Ouch! Alright, I'm done," Harry said, still trying to get his chuckles to subside.

"Please and thank you. Holy fuck," I said, putting my food down. "I need some air. Fleur, Hermione. Walk with me. I need some people with sanity right now."

"My pleasure," Fleur said, rising to her feet. Hermione also gladly got to her feet.

"I said we'll stop," Harry said, finally getting his chuckles to subside. I then looked at Fred and George.

"I don't believe those two will," I said, pointing at them.

"And you would be right," Fred said with a grin. I only shook my head before walking out of the Hall. As soon as I stepped into the sunlight, I rubbed my face.

"That... was something else," Hermione said.

"No kidding," I said, beginning to pace.

"You ok?" Fleur asked.

"It's been a while since I've felt that mortified. Aurore deserves a medal," I said, shaking my head.

"To 'er, eet is a talent," Fleur said.

"Apparently. Anyway, let's focus on something that's more sane. Fleur, this Hermione. Hermione, Fleur," I said, gesturing between the two.

"You were the one that laughed during Dumbledore's speech," she said. Fleur had the decency to look somewhat abashed.

"Apologies for zat. Ze attitude I eemploy is a mask, if you will," she said.

"A mask?" Hermione questioned.

"Eet is far easier to keep away more... undesirable people zat way," Fleur said.

"Yes, but it's also a good way to keep away the more desirable ones as well," Hermione reminded her.

"I was not 'ere to make friends initially," Fleur told him.

"Things don't often go the way we want them to. Whether it's good or bad is up to fate," I said, holding my arms out to the world as if I were receiving it.

"Eeccentric and philosopical," Fleur said, making me smile.

"I try," I said.

"A little too much, to be honest. He's either extremely violent or extremely political. I don't know which one is worse at times," Hermione said.

"They're both very powerful tools. So I use them," I said simply. Before Fleur could speak, there was an exclamation behind them.

"Oi! You three doing anything I would do?!" Fred roared at us with George right next to him, who was sniggering.

"If I go to Azkaban, bail me out," I told Fleur and Hermione before politely moving past them. Then I started running like an angry bull. "Fred!" Even as he was running and he had no hope of outrunning me, he was still laughing. I couldn't help it. I was laughing too as I caught him. Things felt a lot lighter than they were when I first found out when I had to participate in this tournament. I was glad for that.


	11. Chapter 11 - Dragons

I calmly flipped the half dollar coin as I saw in the chair with my leg crossed over my knee. My mind, however, was running faster than I could. Which was fast.

"Dragons," Harry said in the seat across from me. "Bloody. Fucking. Dragons."

"At least it's something I can actually manage. Though the process of actually doing so might be harder than I think. These are nesting mothers after all. It'll be hard to get past them without getting swatted," I told him.

"That's right. You can't use anything during the tournament, can you?" Harry said, making me shake my head. "Damn. And I know with some of the weapons you have, you'd be able to kill it if given enough time."

"Yeah, well... let's not focus on that. How do you reckon I should go about this?" Harry asked.

"Playing to your strengths is a key thing to any task. Me? I made sure that every skill I had was a strength as the Vigilante. Stealth. Combat skills. Marksmanship. Brains. Brawn. Brutality. Etc," I told him. "Even though at one point, brutality was not part of my resume."

"Well, unfortunately, I'm not you, so I have a smaller list to work with. Let's see... I'm adept at curses, charms, and Quidditch. That's kind of it. I'm average at pretty much everything else," Harry said.

"Quidditch is the thing you're the most good at. You reckon a Summoning Charm for your Firebolt oughta do it?" I questioned.

"What, from all the way on the field?" Harry questioned.

"Yeah. You've got the strength for it. I have no doubt about that. No curse you can use will be powerful enough to affect a dragon. Unless it's aimed right at the eyes. That's pretty much the only thing that's weak magically," I told him.

"Flying it is then. I could also hit it with like a Conjunctivitis Curse or something while in the air to stun it, then take the opportunity to get past it," Harry said, making me smile.

"Sounds like you've already got a plan. I can help you make sure your Summoning Charm is up to snuff for the tournament. We can practice on separate edges of the castle and keep in touch with the earpieces. As for the Conjunctivitis Curse, you think you can handle that?" I asked.

"I did say curses were a strong point. Hell, I may be even able to pull off some of those Dark ones I read about," Harry said.

"Probably a good idea to pass on that one. I don't think the judges'll take kindly to that," I said.

"You're probably right. Conjunctivitis it is then," Harry said, rubbing his eyes. "What about you? How are you going to get past your dragon?"

"Hell if I know. Evade like a fool and hope for the best?" I questioned.

"There's got to be some way you can deal with it," Harry asked.

"It's more than likely the dragon'll be restrained by a chain with an Unbreakable Charm so they can't just roam free, so there goes any hopes of trying to go in for a short, but brutal taming session. I could try and climb on top of it and go for the eyes. Don't know how long I'll be able to stay up there before it tries to swat me off. And unlike most things I try to hurt, that is going to take a little time," I explained, my fingers under my chin in thought. "Ugh. It sucks not having any tools to work with. If I could just have my goblin sword, I could just slay it. If I can hold off a basilisk, I can handle a dragon."

"Let's sleep on it. Might make it easier," Harry suggested, rubbing his eyes. I nodded and got to my feet before we both went up the staircase.

* * *

I was lying on my jet, looking up at the sky while my hands idly turned a coin over between the fingers. The radio was playing Five Finger Death Punch, which seemed like the most appropriate band as of now.

Thinking about getting past a dragon with having access to nothing was rather stressing. Evasive tactics would only get me so far. I had no weapons. No cloaking. No concealment tools. Not even a damn smoke bomb. It felt like forever since I worked without tech. And it was against a dragon. But unlike previous situations, I needed at least something. Anything.

"Guess I'm going to have to wing it," I said aloud as I gripped the coin in my hand. "God, this bites."

I then continued to mull over the possibilities. I had no idea what the terrain was looking like, so I had no way to work out a strategy using the environment. I would just have to figure it out as I went along.

"Zat zing is still astonishing," Fleur said, walking near my jet. I smiled before summoning my phone and pressing a button.

"Go ahead and hop aboard. I cut the countermeasures off," I told her, patting the considerable space that was next to me. She eyed it apprehensive before placing a tentative finger on the jet. Once it didn't electrocute her, she climbed aboard.

 _You can be me and I will be you_

 _You can live just like a star_

 _I'll take my sanity_

 _You take the fame_

"I'm under and over it now," I sang, a rare smile coming to my face. "Under and over it!"

"Eenteresting choice of music," Fleur said, looking at the jet. With the press of a button, I cut it off.

"Guessing it's not your cup of tea?" I asked.

"You could say zat," Fleur said.

"Try this then," I said, opting for a different selection.

 _Drawn into you_

 _Magnetic_

 _You're magnetic_

"Better?" I asked.

"Better," Fleur said while smiling. "But if you wish to play what you were playing..."

"Nah, it's fine. I need something to take my mind off things," I said.

"Ze first task?" Fleur questioned, making me nod. "I've been thinking about it quite a bit." I looked at her. There was no point in beating around the bush.

"I know you know what the first task is. You're not the only one who knows. So does Krum, Harry, Cedric, and me," I told her, making her look at me in an astonished fashion.

"'Ow-"

"You're not the only one who has people telling you things," I said evenly. She didn't respond to that.

"'Ow are you taking it?" Fleur questioned.

"Honestly?" I questioned, making Fleur nod. "I have no motherfucking clue how I'm going to get past that thing. I have no tools; no trump cards to play. If I were allowed to use my weapons, things would be a lot different. I'd wager I'd even be able to slay that thing if that were the case, but I don't."

"Zat's beyond worrying. And your ward?" Fleur asked.

"Call him Harry. And he's already got a plan worked out. His ability to have a wand allows him that. I have to go out there and wing it. Get past a dragon. Using nothing," I said with a humorless chuckle. "You know, whoever's playing this joke of fate on me, it's not funny. Not at all."

"Zat is very worrying," Fleur said.

"That doesn't begin to describe what this is," I said, sitting up and jumping off the jet. I then summoned those two pistols I showed her and Aurore. "Watch this."

Barely taking my fingers off the trigger to adjust my aim slightly, I began to fire bullet holes in a tree. Until they spelled a distinct message: 'Fate sucks.'

"That's my marksmanship and trigger finger," I said before noticing she was rubbing her ears. "Oh, sorry. Not everyone is quite used to the sound of guns firing."

"Eet's fine. But zat's fairly accurate," Fleur said.

"Not bad with a sword either. Now, this would all be very useful if I was allowed weapons. But I just can't ignore the fact that I can't. It's immensely annoying," I said, swapping the clips before making the guns disappear. "What about you? Got a plan?"

"Oui. Eet should work. As for ze remaining 'oo champions, I do not know," Fleur said.

"Well, well. I was wondering where you went. And I see you have my tutor with you," Aurore said, walking up to the jet. I chuckled.

"And who said I was going to teach you anything?" I questioned.

"Do I have to dress in a naughty student's outfit to make you pay attention?" Aurore questioned.

"I must admit. That would work," I said before smirking. "No promises that you would actually learn anything though."

"Are you normally like zis?" Fleur asked.

"No. It's kinda fun though. Never actually played this kinda game with anyone before," I said.

"Zat surprises me. Given 'ow you are a 'very eligible bachelor,'" Fleur said with a smirk. Aurore laughed while I groaned.

"Ah, there's the Fleur I like!" Aurore said.

"I'm being harassed by life sized Barbie dolls," I said flatly. Given the blank looks they gave me, they had no idea what they were. "It's an American thing."

"Ah, so zat is where you are from," Fleur said.

"With the lack of the accent, we obviously knew you weren't English," Aurore said.

"I would certainly hope so. Otherwise, you'd shoot your whole 'smarter than you look' thing out of the sky," I said, making both of them glare at me. I only grinned as Aurore looked at the source of the music.

"Lemme guess. This was more of Fleur's suggestion," Aurore said.

"How'd you guess?" I asked dryly.

"I take you more as the punk rock, heavy metal type," Aurore said.

"You sure you haven't been stalking me?" I questioned with a raised brow. Aurore only gave me a sly grin. "Oh, boy."

"Nah. It just looks so... you. I wouldn't be surprised if one of them turned of them describes you perfectly," Aurore said.

"There is one," I said simply.

"Oh?" Aurore questioned. I then selected a song, immediately paused it, dragged the bar a set distance before hitting play.

 _I'm the dark messiah..._

 _I'm the vengeful one!_

"That says it all," Aurore said, shaking her head with her hand gestured out towards me. I then shut the music off with a smirk. "So you take no prisoners, huh?"

"Nope," I said. I wasn't quite sure they exactly knew the extent of which I took that. Not sure they would still be friends with me if they did. That's for another day.

"I talked to the nurse. You seem to make a habit out of sending one particular student to the hospital wing," Aurore said, causing Fleur to snap her head to me.

"Considering he's a bigoted asshole, thinks that anyone who isn't pureblood is beneath him, has an ego the size of a fucking space station, seems to think that his father's riches gives him the right to do whatever he wants, and calls people Mudblood with reckless abandon, I think I'm given the right to prove him wrong on multiple accounts," I explained to them, making Fleur's and Aurore's lips curl in displeasure.

"The last one is what really does it," Aurore said, disgust in her tone. "And he gets away with this?"

"Do I look like I let him get away with it?" I said, giving her a simple look.

"Not what I mean. The officials, the teachers?" Aurore asked.

"It's like the dickhead has a radar for teachers. But recently, he's been keeping the word to a bare minimum. Hopefully, what I did to him will make him shut up about it for the rest of the year," I said.

"What did you do?" Fleur asked.

"Knocked almost all of his teeth out of his mouth and broke a rib. I was much, much more tempted to hurt him more than that," I said darkly.

"Call me next time. I know a few jinxes that can have some rather... nasty effects when combined," Aurore said, making me grin.

"Excellent," I said.

"I am friends with sadists," Fleur said flatly.

"Oh, you know you love us!" Aurore said with a million dollar grin. Well, million dollars to everyone except Fleur.

"Debatable," Fleur said in a haughty tone. Aurore looked at me while jerking a thumb at Fleur.

"Her sanity never goes MIA. I told her it's not necessarily the best thing in the world," Aurore said.

"Speaking of things going MIA, how is your English so good?" I questioned with a curious tone. "Wasn't this good when I first met you. I actually wanted to ask when I first saw you again, to be honest." I was surprised to see that Aurore actually went slightly red while Fleur smirked.

"You want to tell him, or shall I?" Fleur asked. But she wasn't waiting for an answer. "She practiced 'er Eenglish for you. She saw you as a potential suitor."

My eyebrows raised into my hair at this bit of news and I looked over at Aurore, who was glaring at Fleur.

"Did I pass?" I questioned dryly.

"Yes. With flying colors," Aurore said before kicking Fleur in the shin. That didn't stop her from laughing.

"Really, Aurore. I'm flattered," I said, leaning up with a small bow.

"You should be. Wasn't the easiest thing to rid myself of the accent while speaking in English. I told Fleur she should do it to, but she told me she wasn't here to impress anyone," Aurore said.

"That sounds about right," I said with a nod. "But still. Terribly sweet of you."

"In case you don't work, I can work over a decent Englishman or two because of this skill. So it isn't all for you," Aurore said haughtily, making me laugh.

"And you're back. Excellent," I said with a grin.

"You expected me to act like a love sick puppy for you? You are very good looking, but not _that_ good looking," Aurore said.

"If I'm not, no one is," I said with a haughty tone. Then I shook my head. "Goddammit. I'm turning into you two."

"And zat's a bad zing?" Fleur questioned with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes," I said evenly. I got two swats on the back of my head for that answer.


	12. Chapter 12 - The First Task

I was breathing in and out at an even rate, my heart beating faster than normal. Going into the heart of danger was one thing, but going into it unarmed was an entirely different one. My hands were connected in front of my face before I began to look around.

Fleur was sitting in a corner on a wooden stool, looking pale and clammy. The true fear of her having to face a dragon seemed to have settled in now like it didn't yesterday. Krum looked surlier than usual, which was no surprise. Cedric was pacing back and forth, looking antsy to get this over with. Harry was sitting in the seat that was right next to me.

"You ready?" he asked me.

"I would've been ready if I was allowed a weapon," I said dryly. "I'm only ready mentally."

"It'll be fine," Harry assured him.

"Easy for you to say. You have a plan," I said somewhat bitterly.

"You move faster than some people can blink. That'll be a definitely advantage for this. The dragon can't burn what it can't hit," Harry told me, his voice lowering somewhat so he wouldn't be overheard. After all, we weren't supposed to know about the dragons.

After he said that, Bagman looked like a colored picture in a white and black film, given the situation. Every champion here had a case of nerves. But why would Bagman? He doesn't have to get past a fifty foot dragon, much less armed with nothing.

"Well, now we're all here - time to fill you in!" Bagman said brightly. I wanted to hurt him for sounding so cheerful. "When the audience has assembled, I'm going to be offering each of you this bag..." - he held up a small sack of purple silk and shook it at us - "...from which you will each select a small model of the thing you are about to face! There are different - er - varieties, you see. And I have to tell you something else too... ah, yes... your task is to collect the golden egg!"

I nodded numbly, getting the gist of the task. We had to take a golden egg from a _nesting mother dragon_. Um, how exactly was it fair that I was allowed to use nothing to do this? That was easy. It wasn't.

In no time at all, Bagman was offering the bag to Fleur. She put a hand in the bag, her hand shaking before pulling out a tiny model of the Chinese Fireball with the number three around its neck. Her face seemed to harden before going back to sit.

Krum pulled out a dragon for a Ukraian Ironbelly with the number two. Something akin to worry crossed his face before it instantly disappeared. Then he went to go sit back down in his seat. If his plan involved the eyes, I could see why he would be worried. Ironbellies were born blind. Depending on his plan, that little tidbit could prove to be very bad for him.

Cedric then pulled out his dragon. Welsh Green with the number one on its neck. Harry was next up. To my horror, he pulled out the Hungarian Horntail with the number five around its neck. I sighed in resignation, as I knew what was left. I didn't know whether to be upset or happy that I didn't get the Horntail.

I stuck my hand inside the bag and pulled out the Swedish Short-Snout with the number four around its neck. I sat down, feeling slightly ill at the thought of Harry having to deal with the more vicious one. Not to mention one that has a deadlier body as well as an extended range to blow flame at. Then again, Harry would be able to dodge it easy on his Firebolt.

"Well, there you are!" Bagman said. "You have each pulled out the dragon you will face, and the numbers refer to the order in which you are to take on the dragons, do you see? Now, I'm going to have to leave you in a moment, because I'm commentating. Mr. Diggory, you're first, just go out into the enclosure when you hear a whistle, all right? Now... Harry... could I have a quick word? Outside?"

"Er... yes," Harry said before glancing at me. I only shrugged before looking directly in front of me while having my fingers folded in front of my faces.

 _"Of all the things for him to get, it had to be the damned Horntail,"_ I thought bitterly. Then again, with a slight smile, I remembered that if Harry's anything like me, the Horntail'll be the one regretting that she got Harry.

"How are you able to smile right now?" Cedric suddenly asked me, instantly wiping the smile from my face.

"I have to find something to take my mind off the dragon that I have to get past with nothing, now don't I?!" I exclaimed, my tone coming out harsher than I wanted it to. I shook my head while looking down at the ground. I hadn't felt this worried for a long time.

"Right. Sorry..." Cedric said awkwardly before resuming his pacing. I sighed. Holy fuck, I was tense. So rather than try to mentally calm myself, it was time for some liquid courage.

I summoned the bottle of vodka that Sirius sent me as soon as I heard the whistle for Cedric to enter the enclosoure. I never thought I would even touch it, but then I downed half of the bottle in a few gulps. I flexed my shoulders from the pulse that vibrated my skull. This had to been some magical stuff. Muggle alcohol couldn't so much as get me tipsy due to my very powerful nervous system.

"That was... invigorating," I said, making the bottle disappear.

"Never seen you drink," Harry said, coming up to me.

"Haven't felt a need to until now. Plus Muggle alcohol to get me drunk is like trying to fill a lake with a water pistol. Only the magical stuff remotely affects me. Seems like it goes straight for the brain rather than taking the long way through your nervous system," I told him. "Anyway, what did Bagman want?"

"Offered me help," he said silently. "I don't reckon it was because I was the youngest champion like he was suggesting." That made me frown.

"I'm not thinking much of it, but if necessary one day, take him up on his help. Take every advantage you can get," I told him in a whisper. I looked up at both Krum and Fleur, both of which were staring at us.

"I'll make note of that. But I'm pretty sure we'll be able to handle these tasks on our own," Harry said before going to sit in the seat next to me. Silence struck the room.

Sitting and listening made the anticipation for what was to come even worse. Not to mention Bagman's commentary with him saying things like, "Oooh, narrow miss there, very narrow"... "He's taking risks, this one!"..."Clever move - pity it didn't work!"

The same thing true for Krum and Fleur's tasks. Just plain unnerving commentary from Bagman and disturbing sounds from the dragon. I don't know if Harry felt the same way I did, but it felt like the time for me to go do my task took no time at all. It felt like mere minutes before my whistle rang out for me to take my turn.

"Good luck," Harry told me. Despite the situation, I smiled a little.

"We have good luck?" I questioned rhetorically, making him give me a shaky smile as well. But my heart and ears pounded as I walked out of the tent and onto the field.

The environment was built like an arena; the terrain very rocky with a large fence protecting the crowd. Given the emphasis on protection, I wouldn't be suprised if it had a few powerful Shield Charms up as well.

I could spot the Short-Snout hanging around at the very end of the enclosure, crouched low over her eggs like a large protector. I spotted the gold one out of the bunch with ease, but getting to it was not going to be easy.

"And here's our Muggle champion! Many of the public does not know, but his lack of magical ability prevents him from using any sort of tool to get past his dragon. He will have to use his body's natural abilities and talent to get him through this," Bagman told the crowd. A sort of silence struck the area to the point where it felt like my ears were actually flooded with noise. The public didn't know that, it seemed. But I couldn't focus on that. Needed to get an egg from a dragon. Easy, right?

As I moved closer, about halfway to the Short-Snout, it breathed a spew of warning fire at me so that I would be deterred from moving any closer. With reckless abandon, I covered my face and jumped through the flame as if it weren't there. There was a type of 'ooh' from the crowd as I landed on my feet, unharmed from the fire.

At this point, the dragon seemed to be entirely aware that I was not going to be deterred. So it used its tail to hit me from a horizontal angle. Leaping in the air, I twisted my body in the air so that the tail would narrowly miss me while landing smoothly on my feet, eyeing the dragon with distaste. The nervousness was gone. There was only resolve and action now.

"Narrow miss there - that would've hurt if it hit!" Bagman exclaimed.

"Ok, let's try being offensive," I said to myself as I ran forward, my gaze on the dragon the entire time. Again, it used its tail to try and hit me in a sweep, but I jumped only slightly so that I would jump on its tail. The momentum from the swipe launched me onto the fence, and I immediately grabbed it before scaling the wall, moving to the side while I did so.

"Ah, now he's on level with his scaly foe! I don't know how this is supposed to help him, but impressive use of the dragon's attack all the same!" Bagman exclaimed.

I moved along the wall of the enclosure, dodging the dragon's attacks when necessary, as they happened periodically while I was on this wall. I was the fly in this dragon's home... A fly it was longing to swat...

The dragon eyed me as I managed to get to the patch of space that got me closer the eggs, but the dragon was looking at me every step of the way, refusing to move from its eggs even an inch. No way I could entice it to move from the spot it was at. I had no way to do so.

I had to dodge another swipe of its tail, the fence holding from the force of the dragon's blow. I stared the dragon right in its ugly face... right into those yellow eyes... Then I realized something.

 _"Eyes are the weak point... Maybe there is a way I can make it hurt without needing a weapon..."_ I thought before holding on the fence with one hand. I then started doing stylish turns on the fence as a way to hopefully entice the dragon to attack me.

It breathed a steady stream of fire. I had to move quickly as to not get scalded, and it was definitely not the attack I wanted.

"Come on you ugly bastard... give me what I want..." I growled as I dodged another stream of fire.

Then it happened: it moved its tail in a sideways sort of hit. I grit my teeth. This was gonna hurt.

The dragon's tail hit me and pressed me against the fence, a few of my ribs cracking from the force of the tail. There was a loud groan from the crowd, but as the dragon forcefully retracted its tail, I smiled.

"That blow surely... no, wait! Great Scott, what is he doing?" Bagman said.

I held onto the dragon's tail as it launched me and let go at the appropriate time. Launched directly into the dragon's right eye. My feet went deep enough until they were knee length into the dragon's eye, causing it to let out a pained screech. Then, my nails somehow able to find a stable grip on the dragon's scales, forced my body in deeper.

"Great Merlin... he used his own body as a projectile for the dragon's eye! Most people would be disabled after being hit the way he was with the dragon's tail the way he was!" Bagman exclaimed.

 _"Most people. I'm not most people,"_ I thought with an unconscious grin as I forced my feet in deeper. The dragon swiped its tail, but due to my ability to twist my body like it was made of rubber at the best of the times, dodged the dragon's tail and forced it to back up three of its gigantic steps while being stunned. Prying myself out of its eyes, I eagerly jumped down into the clump of eggs and took the golden one. With a grin, I held it up to the sky as if it were a gift from God. Felt like one.

What I hadn't expected was the crowd to erupt with cheers. The dragon tamers were already coming onto the scene to subdue the dragon, but I felt as if I could take it all over again. I wouldn't test that feeling, but I felt as if I could. When it came down to it, they seemed to be just as much on my side as they were on Cedric's. Or maybe it was just the fact that what I just did was astronomically impressive.

"Look at that! Our Muggle champion is the fastest to get his egg!" Bagman exclaimed.

 _"You can thank the dragon's cooperative behavior for that..."_ I thought as I began to head back towards a different exit than the direction of the tent we were waiting again.

Then I came aware of the burning sensation in my chest. Oh, right. My ribs. I injected a hypo into my arm, and the burning sensation immediately disappeared. It was only common sense of health that made me do that. I had been hurt so many times training myself that it wasn't even a big deal anymore.

"That was impressive, Mr. Morgan!" Professor McGonagall exclaimed, who was waiting for me at the entrance along with Hagrid. From her, that was praise of the highest regard. "Very reckless methods, but impressive nonetheless."

"Ah, I can take pain all day. Besides, when you have no way to make a plan, you do what you have to," I told her.

"That is unfortunately true," McGonagall said, her face somewhat grim. I noticed her hand was shaking as well. "I believe you've already repaired your own ribs?"

"Uh huh," I said with a smile.

"Then you may wait here until it is time to go get your score," McGonagall said as I smiled at Hagrid.

"Sorry I had to hurt it Hagrid, but you know how it goes," I said.

"Ah, it's fine. Besides, I reckon it got of easy compared to if you were allowed some of yer weapons," Hagrid said.

"Very true. I wouldn't have been taking it as a prisoner if that was the case. Guess it's sort of good that I wasn't allowed weapons I guess," I said with a sheepish smile.

 _"Yeah, like I was saying that about an hour ago..."_ I thought right after I said that.

"No excuses for that. Maybe they should start having regulations for Muggle involvement as well now," McGonagall said.

"Sorry to break it to you Professor, but they would sooner let werewolves run entire branches of government before that happens," I said before there was another whistle. "Ah, I reckon they're ready for me to see my score."

I walked out onto the field, the disappearance of the dragon allowed me see all five of the judges in elevated seats. Let's see what they would think of my performance...

Madame Maxime raised her wand in the air. A large ribbon shot out of it, forming into the number ten. My eyes widened. That was unexpected. I got hurt, but she seemed to be more than impressed by my obvious disadvantage than the rest of the judges. Except perhaps Dumbledore.

Mr. Crouch was next. He shot a nine in the air. I nodded in satisfaction.

Dumbledore then put up his number. He put up a ten. I grinned while the crowd got distinctively louder.

Bagman - ten. Looking good.

Karkaroff was last. He gave pause and we ended up making eye contact somehow. Then he raised his wand as well - six. I rolled my eyes. But hey. He probably did that so I wouldn't beat Krum or something. I wouldn't be surprised if that were the case. But hey. Forty-five out of fifty. Not a bad score. Especially considering I had to use nothing to get this done.

I then walked back into the tent as I passed Harry. He grinned, and so did I.

"Knock em dead kid," I said, pausing for a brief moment.

"Of course," he said as I went to walk in. The other champions were already here. They all looked up at me, but I only grinned as I went to take my seat while staring at the egg.

 _"I did it... I fucking did it..."_ I thought, my smile unconsciously getting wider. _"Who are you kidding? If you lived to clean up American, French, and English crime, facing a dragon's is child's play."_

 _"Yeah, but unlike that job, I actually had tools to help me,"_ another part of my mind argued.

I'm sitting here mentally arguing with myself. I couldn't tell if I had Multiple Personality Disorder or whether it was just a result of my mind being extremely weird. Option one wouldn't have been surprising, but I would put money on option number two.

Then I decided on perking up my ears for Harry's task. The dragon was roaring an awful lot... Every now and then I heard a fast 'woosh,' which meant that Harry had his Firebolt... Lot of cheers from the crowd when the dragon squealed. Harry was definitely making use of his gift for curses... About a minute later, Harry got his egg judging from the booming roar that the crowd gave off. I sat up from my crouched position as I was sitting down with a smile.

 _"Think that was faster than me, in fact,"_ I thought, my smile unconsciously getting wider. Seconds later, Harry walked in with a triumphant smile on his face and his golden egg in his left hand, raised in victory. I smiled before going over to him and clapping hands with him before going in for a quick hug. A 'bro' hug, in simpler terms.

"That's how we do it," Harry said with a grin.

"That's how you show people you don't need to be pureblood to do the amazing," I said with a grin as I put an arm around his shoulder. "You hurt?"

"Thing didn't touch me. It's gonna take a bit of recovery before it'll be able to see properly," Harry told me.

"Mine will probably be forever blind in its right eye," I told him with a grin. "Shame we couldn't see each other's tasks. I hope someone recorded it or something."

"Harry, Robert... You both were amazing!" Hermione exclaimed. I noticed some deep nail marks in her face. A couple seemed to have drawn blood, which she haphazardly healed.

"Thanks. Initially I had-" I paused. My eyesight wandered over to Ron. "We're not ghosts, are we?"

"I'm a bloody idiot," Ron suddenly said making me immediately understand.

"Bout time you figured that out. I may be weird, but I find getting hit in the ribs by a dragon's tail to not be a very favorable past time," I said, my tone somewhat icy. Ron looked down at his feet for a moment before opening his mouth in an uncertain fashion. As if we were one, me and Harry both raised an eyebrow.

"I'm sorry. The both of you. About all of this. I was just being a stupid, jealous prat," Ron said.

"I will not deny that bit, but you better learn to get control over your jealousy. Otherwise, you're going to need a lot more than an apology and admitting that you're wrong for us to remotely trust you again," I told him. Ron seemed to nod in resignation. Then I sighed. I could be more than just a critic.

"Look, I know it's not easy living in the shadow of people, but what you have to realize is that if you want to be recognized for something, you have to shoot for the big things. The more difficult things. And I'm not talking about this tournament," I said at his open mouth. "I'm talking about things that could really identified as simple. You shoot for the easiest thing, no matter what. Do you think I became what I am taking the easy way? A multi-trillionaire inventor while being a crime hunter on the side? No. I had to work hard. I put blood, sweat, tears into both of those things. I worked when my eyes hurt and my body ached. Even then, I continued."

The whistle for Harry to go get his scores sounded, and I gestured outside.

"We should go see his scores," I said, leading Harry by the shoulder to head outside. It took a few seconds, but I heard Ron's footsteps eventually began to follow us.

"Scores are one through ten, right?" Harry asked.

"Uh huh," I told him as he looked up at Madame Maxime. Who, just like me, made a ribbon of the number ten.

"Nice!" Ron said, thumping Harry on the back.

Mr. Crouch was next to make his number. Unlike me, he put up the number ten. I still smiled.

"Looking good!" Ron exclaimed.

Dumbledore's turn - ten. The crowd was going crazy at this point.

Bagman also put up a number. Ten.

"Niiiice," I said, patting Harry on the shoulder with reassurance.

Karkaroff paused for a moment. He seemed to be giving his number some thought before a number shot out of his wand - five.

"Five? Unbelievable," I said, shaking my head.

"What?" Ron bellowed furiously. "Five? You lousy, biased scum-bag, you gave Krum ten!"

"He was like this when it came to your score as well," Hermione told me. I tried not to smile at that bit of news. I couldn't let him think that he would be able to earn our trust again with some furious statements on our behalf and some apologies. The gesture was appreciated though.

"So we're tied," I said with a smirk.

"Looks that way. Who knows? Maybe I'm just as good as you," Harry said. I raised an eyebrow before grabbing his arm. His reflexes were fast enough to give a base reaction, but he was not faster than me. I held his arm in a lock while holding the back of his neck.

"What was that now?" I questioned.

"I take it back," Harry said, making me release him. He was grinning just as wide as I was. "Considering you did your task with nothing, you deserve the top spot."

"Why thank you," I said, stopping for a moment to bow a little bit. The three of them rolled their eyes at my behavior.

"You're in first place Harry!" Charlie exclaimed, coming up to us as we started to head back towards the school. "You and Robert! Bloody impressive if you ask me. Listen, I've got to run, I've got to go and send Mum an owl, I swore I'd tell her what happened - but that was unbelievable! The both of you. I just wish you could've spared the dragon a little bit." He was looking at me when he said this, and I couldn't help but grin.

"Hey, I had to do what I had to do," I said, raising my hands in surrender.

"I know. Still - That dragon's never going to see out of that eye again... Oh yeah - and they told me to tell you that you both have got to hang around for a few more minutes... Bagman wants a word, back in the champions' tent," Charlie finished.

"We'll wait for you," Ron said. We smiled and gave him a pat on the shoulder before walking back towards the tent.

The very atmosphere of the tent was far different now. There was a nervousness and fear in the air that wouldn't shake anyone before the task. An unmistakable welcoming feeling had taken its place considering every champion was in high hopes, having gotten past their dragon.

All five of us champions took places in one sport. My spirits were so high, I even flashed the very surly Krum a warm grin as we lined up next to each other.

"Nice job," Cedric said to the both of us.

"To you as well," me and Harry said with grins on our faces. We didn't have know what he did to know that getting past a dragon was beyond impressive.

"Well done, all of you!" Ludo Bagman said, bouncing into the tent and looking as pleased as though he personally had just got past a dragon. Which made me roll my eyes until they were almost staring at the back of my skull at the thought. "Now, just a quick few words. You've got a nice long break before the second task, which will take place at half past nine on the morning of February the twenty-fourth - but we're giving you something to think about in the meantime! If you look down at those golden eggs you're all holding, you will see that they open... see the hinges there? You need to solve the clue inside the egg - because it will tell you what the second task is, and enable you to prepare for it! All clear?"

"Crystal," I said evenly, but still smiling.

"Well off you go then! One more thing Mr. Morgan. You will be allowed to use whatever resources are at your disposal for this task," Bagman said, making me give off an audible sigh of relief.

"Thank God. I'm definitely happy for that bit of news," I said as I began to walk towards the exit of the tent. But then I felt a hand on my shoulder. A rather soft hand.

"Well done to you," Fleur said as I turned to face who it was. I smiled wider.

"And to you," I said. Then I became acutely aware of a weird feeling in my shoes. I looked down to see that I was still covered in dragon's blood for when I used my body as a needle for the dragon's hypothetical pincushion. "Oh. Forgot about that."

"Scorugify," Fleur said simply, wiping all the blood off my pants.

"Thanks, but... yikes. I can still feel some in my shoes. This is why I wear combat boots. They're literally made so substances don't get through. But no. They insist on making us wear outfits specifically for us," I said, tapping my shoes against the ground. "I'll wait until I get back to the common room to get rid of it. Ugh. Dragon's blood is pretty thick."

"Zat likely feels... uncomfortable," Fleur said.

"I've felt worse. Like a dragon's tail being barreled into my ribs," I told her, making her look at me hesitantly. "It's fine. They're fixed. I got past the task. Harry passed his. That's all I care about."

"You care for 'im deeply, don't you?" Fleur asked.

"That's what being a parent is all about. It's not like there aren't parents out there that are younger than me. Comparing myself to them, I think I'm quite overqualified to take care of a child," I told her.

"I suppose so. But... what about..."

"Fun fact: I haven't enjoyed my youth for a long time. It's always been adult responsibilities. Moving on," I said, preferring to avoid that topic. "Was this just to grant congratulations?"

"Yes... I suppose so," Fleur said.

"Well, thank you very much. I'm sure the members of your school wish to celebrate with you just as the members of my House wish to celebrate with us. A Gryffindor celebration means humor and good food. Don't wanna miss that," I said with a grin.

"I would zink not," Fleur said, a smile coming on to her face.

"Later, alright? We'll talk later," I assured her, patting her shoulder before walking off to catch up to Harry and the others.

"What'd she want?" he asked.

"To congratulate me. Guess so far, I'm doing a good job on the international cooperation side of this tournament," I said before thinking of the Durmstrang students as an afterthought. "Well, decent at the very least."

"What do you mean by that?" Hermione asked.

"Got attacked by a few Durmstrang students on my way from Dumbledore's office. They claim, that my literal ability to not be able to compete in the tournament would make me exempt from the contract. They more than likely don't know that me not competing in this tournament means that I could lose my soul, but it's still a dick move," I explained.

"You're not kidding. What'd Karkaroff say?" Harry asked.

"He said, he would 'deal with them accordingly' when I talked to Madam Promfrey, who conveyed the message. Probably didn't do a damn thing to them. He may have been a former Death Eater, but it wasn't because he had a change of heart. He wanted to avoid Azkaban time. I'm not surprised if he still has his Muggle prejudices still kicking. Bastard is probably aching to throw a Cruciatus my way," I said darkly.

"Well, if that's the case, then you won't have to hold back when dealing with him. You can be as vicious as you want," Harry said, making me grin. Hermione and Ron both eyed Harry strangely. As if he had just transformed into some unique creature.

"Been a while since I've done anything more than break bones. That's a good thing," I told him.

"For them or for you?" Ron asked.

"For them and what's left of my sanity," I said. "C'mon. We need to call Sirius before we go down for our 'surprise party' in the common room."

"Why do we even call them surprise parties? We always expect them," Hermione asked.

"Even I don't know. But hey. They will forever be dubbed as surprise parties even though they will surprise no one," I said, gesturing for them to follow me as Ron and Hermione snorted. "C'mon. We can make the call if we go out far enough towards the wood."

The four of us then began to head our way towards the wood before I dialed the number of the phone I left with Sirius. Boy, having phone reception is far better waiting for owls. I could thank dear old Mundungus for that. Still wouldn't stop me from disliking the bastard. I was so glad I didn't run into him when I was at the Cup. I don't need to smell mobile hazmat sites.

 _"Yello?"_ Sirius asked cheekily, the grin clearly showing through his voice. He knew that we would be the only ones calling this line.

"We're done with the task. Harry's in first," I told him.

 _"That's excellent! What'd you do?"_ Sirius asked.

"Harry or me first?" I asked.

 _"Let's start with you first,"_ Sirius said.

"I used the dragon's tail to launch me directly into its eye. It started backpedaling in agony, so I took the opportunity to remove myself and grab the egg. Had to crack a couple of ribs to do it, but it was worth it," I told him.

 _"Not a bad plan. And Harry?"_ Sirius asked.

"I'm sure he'd rather tell you himself," I said, removing the phone from my ear. I then held it out towards Harry. "Sirius wants to know how you got past your dragon."

"You're damn right I want to tell him myself," Harry said, grabbing the phone. I turned my head and there was no one standing near us. I also activated AS vision to thoroughly check. We would have a lot of things explain if we were found talking to 'notorious mass murderer Sirius Black.'

"Summoning Charm to get my broomstick, then I rained hell down on its head with curses. More specifically, the eyes. Yes, Conjunctivitis was in the mix. Other ones came to mind, but that was by far the most effective. Amazingly, none of the eggs got trampled on and I didn't get touched. We're gonna head back to the common room in a minute," Harry explained to Sirius with a smile on his face. "Uh huh. You sound like Moody. 'Constant vigilance' and all that. But I'll definitely make note of that. Yeah, we'll make sure to keep you updated on anything new. Ron and Hermione both say hi. Yes, we've made up. Not quite on the same terms as before, but we're at least speaking again. Uh huh. I'll tell him. Alright, see you dear godfather of mine."

"Bye Sirius!" Ron and Hermione yelled at the same time as Harry held the phone towards them so he would hear it better. Then he shut off the call and handed it back to me.

"Ron, Sirius said if you act like an idiot around me again, you'll be in the _next_ gigantic explosion he causes," Harry said, making Ron snort.

"That's why I can get along with Sirius. He has a sense of humor. He's not like old Crouch," he said.

"We're talking about Crouch. They guy who sounds about as curt as a Batman during an interrogation. 'Where are they?'" I imitated in a rough copycat voice of Christian Bale in The Dark Knight. Both Harry and Hermione snorted from the reference, but Ron only snickered. I'm sure the only reason he laughed was because of the imitation. "Anyway, let's head on towards the common room."

As expected, when we went to the common room, it exploded with cheers and yells. Me and Harry, having suddenly taken the attention in stride, raised the golden eggs we retrieved in victory while raising triumphant fists. It felt good to split my face like this considering I was doing anything but before this task.

"Blimey this is heavy," Lee Jordan said, picking up Harry's golden egg. He then turned around and saw me tossing the egg up in the air and catching it with no effort while eating a cake. "Showoff... Anyway, open it Harry! Go on! Let's see what's inside!"

"He's supposed to work out the clue on his own," Hermione said swiftly. "It's in the tournament rules..."

"And we're supposed to give a fuck why?" I questioned rhetorically, making the entire house laugh. "Go ahead and open it up!"

"Why can't you open yours?" Harry asked me, making me gesture to the cake I was eating.

"Precious cargo here. That comes first," I said, making the house laugh again. "Come on, don't be afraid of 'ol Crouch! He isn't here!"

"As if I care about Crouch," Harry said before prying it open. The noise the came out of the egg made me bite on my tongue, but I was more focused on what was inside. Disappointingly, it was completely empty.

"Shut it!" Fred bellowed, his hands over his ears. Harry gladly obliged and clamped the thing shut.

"You reckon yours is like that as well?" Seamus asked me.

"Yeah. I doubt that they would make one egg different than the other. I got an idea or two as to what we can try," I said, staring at my egg with a more analytical look on my face.

"Sounded like a banshee... Maybe you've got to get past one of those next!" Seamus exclaimed. Consider that a banshee was Seamus' boggart form, he would gladly not want to be in our position.

"It was someone being tortured!" Neville said, who had gone very white and spilled sausage rolls all over the floor. "You're going to have to fight the Cruciatus Curse!"

"Don't be a prat, Neville, that's illegal," George said. "They wouldn't use the Cruciatus Curse on the champions. I thought it sounded a bit like Percy singing... maybe you've got to attack him while he's in the shower." I nearly choked on my last piece of cake. Keeping a straight face was nearly impossible when you were in a room with the Weasley twins.

"Want a jam tart, Hermione?" Fred asked, offering her a plate. She looked at the platter doubtfully, and I couldn't blame her. The twins had been working on gag foods the whole summer. And they had also been using students as test subjects all the while.

"It's all right," he said. "I haven't done anything to them. It's the custard creams you've got to watch -"

Neville, who had just bitten into a custard cream, choked and spat it out. Fred laughed and so did I.

"Just my little joke, Neville..."

"Did you get all this from the kitchens, Fred?" Hermione said, deciding to take the risk and grabbing a jam tart.

"Yep," Fred said, grinning at her. He then put on a high-pitched squeak and imitated a house-elf. "'Anything we can get you, sir? Anything at all!' They're dead helpful... get me a roast ox if I said I was peckish."

"How do you get in there?" Hermione said in an innocently casual sort of voice. I rolled my eyes. That didn't fool me for a second. Then again, I was... me. When I made that an expression, that made me sound arrogant. I wasn't. It just spoke volumes about my character.

"Easy," Fred said, "Concealed door behind a painting of a bowl of fruit. Just tickle the pear, and it giggles and -" He stopped and looked suspiciously at her. "Why?"

"Nothing," Hermione said quickly.

"Honestly Hermione, you need to work on your subtlety," I said. She pointedly ignored me.

"Going to try and lead the house-elves out on strike now, are you?" George said. "Going to give up all the leaflet stuff and try and stir them up into rebellion?"

Several people laughed while Hermione didn't answer. Silence usually meant yes. Or no depending on the situation. That made it sound rather redundant.

"Don't you go upsetting them and telling them they've got to take clothes and salaries!" Fred said warningly. "You'll put them off their cooking!"

Just then, Neville caused a slight diversion by turning into a large canary, causing the entire common room to laugh at the sight.

"Oh - sorry, Neville!" Fred shouted over all the laughter. "I forgot - it was the custard creams we hexed -"

"Anyway," I said after my laughing subsided. "She really wants to try her best to win this bet we have going on."

"You two are betting? Do tell," George said, sounding rather interested.

"Uh huh. If I haven't convinced her that this whole thing she's trying to do with spew is redundant, then I owe her a hundred Galleons to use for the organization. Yes Hermione," I said loudly as I could tell she was about to answer. "I know it stands for the Society for the Promotion of Elfish Welfare, but I really, really don't care."

Several people in the common laughed at my exclamation. Ron especially. Hermione's cheeks took on a slight pink tinge.

"You sound like Ron," she said.

"Every now and then, otherwise empty heads get good ideas every now and then," I said, again making people laugh. This time, Ron's cheeks were the ones who went pink, but he was still smiling all the same.

Then Neville the Canary had molted before transforming back into his regular form. The hilarity of his transformation returned in full force, filling the common room with laughter that had been missing over the course of the past couple months.

"Canary Creams!" Fred shouted to the crowd. "George and I invented them - seven Sickles each, a bargain!"

"Try Ferret Rolls. Inspiration Mad-Eye Moody and one Draco Malfoy," I said with a grin. Fred then pointed at me with a wider grin on his face.

"Maybe there's a jokester in you yet," he said.

"I'm feeling good right now," I said. Everything just felt lighter and happier right now. Hopefully it would stay this way.


	13. Chapter 13 - Inner Demons Surface

"That gives a whole new meaning to the expression, 'human broom,'" Aurore said.

"For Muggles, the expression is 'human missile,' but close enough. Either way, I always find a way to make the plain not so plain anymore," I told her.

"I see. Anyway, you reckon Fleur's coming?" Aurore asked.

"Less money I have to spend on drinks if she doesn't. Which, frankly, isn't a big deal to me. If you dare quote that article, I will dropkick you. A boot for each boob," I warned her, making her snap her mouth shut like it was a very sensitive mousetrap. "Good girl."

"After what you did to that dragon's eye, I'm afraid to what you would do to my cargo," Aurore said, putting her hands on her chest as if she were suddenly self-conscious.

"Turn you that much closer into a guy. The only thing you would have left is your vagina," I said idly, taking a sip of butterbeer.

"You just don't care at all when it comes to conversation, do you?" Aurore asked, making me laugh.

"I earned the right to say whatever the fuck I want no matter who likes it or who doesn't it. Get used to it. It's gonna happen a lot," I said with a grin.

"Then why don't you curse in front of the teachers?" Aurore asked with a teasing grin.

"One, I have better things to do than lose points for the House and earn detention. I'm still doing time for Snape. Two, I actually like all of the teachers that teach. Well, except Professor Binns. Just because he's dead doesn't mean he should try to do the same thing to us through the power of boredom. I stay awake, but only because I'm trying to ace the class. I'm dropping it come NEWTs," I explained to her.

"Sorry?" Aurore questioned.

"Oh," I said, clearing my throat as I put my bottle of butterbeer down. "Nastily Exhausting Wizarding Tests. Basically final exams. They made an abbreviation for it. I take em come two years."

"What about your midterms?" Aurore asked.

"That comes next year," I told her.

"That's not much time between the two," Aurore said.

"Under normal circumstances, you take your OWLs, which are the early exams, in fifth year. I am part of those circumstances. What are not part of normal circumstances is taking your NEWTs, which are final exams, during sixth year. You're supposed to take them during your seventh year. I got the offer to take my exams early cause my teachers noticed that I write and quote stuff that is in years beyond what I'm supposed to be learning. So I'm taking the exams early," I explained before taking a swig of butterbeer.

"Not exactly surprised. You seem pretty smart," Aurore said.

"Knowledge is power. And I have more strengths than just knowledge, so I'm basically sort of like Pandora's Box," I said, making her giving me a blank look. "Part of Greek Mythology. It was a box that was said to hold all of the evil in the world. It also holds a shitload of power, so I'm like a watered down version of that."

"Better drown it, because you're too nice to be evil," Aurore said.

"Oh, I have some rather evil characteristics," I said with a grin. Again, she had no idea what I really meant...

"I'm sure. The dropkick to my glorious bosoms would certainly be evil at its finest," Aurore said haughtily, making me laugh.

"What's zis I 'ear about bosoms?" Fleur questioned, coming up to our table. That timing tho.

"You know how to pick your timing. I was wondering when you'd show up. And dear sweet Robert here threatened to dropkick me in the tits if I messed with him about that article in the paper," Aurore said.

"And I will not hesitate to do the same to you. Believe me, I'm not into that ghost story about chivalry. I'll treat a woman just like I'll treat a man. You being a female does not excuse you," I said easily.

"Well, that certainly is the sign of equality. Unfortunately," Aurore said.

"You have nothing to worry about unless you piss me off," I said before turning to Fleur. "What kept you?"

"Viewed ze egg for a few moments," Fleur said.

"If you need me to buy you a hearing aid, just ask," I said idly, making her grin.

"Zank you for ze offer, but I am fine," Fleur assured me.

"So... Robert..." Aurore trailed, making me raise an eyebrow. She was sure to say something interesting.

"Yes?" I asked.

"You have two very sexy women at your table right now... what are you going to do?" Aurore questioned in an announcing tone of voice.

"Drink my butterbeer?" I questioned rhetorically, making Fleur laugh and Aurore frown in disappointment.

"You're not being very fun right now," she said with a small pout. I had to admit; she pulled it off well.

"I promise if I have a lapse of insanity, we'll all get drunk and have a sloppy, but sexy threesome on a Hungarian Horntail's back, okay?" I said, making Fleur's cheeks burn and Aurore clap her hands and laugh so loudly that people stared at her.

"That's much better!" she exclaimed, making me grin apologetically to Fleur.

"Sorry, but she's good at convincing me to say this kind of shit," I told her.

"Am I ze only one 'ere with a sense of shame?" Fleur asked.

"Yes," Aurore and me said at the same time. I then laughed before sliding the rest of my butterbeer over to her. "If you're not concerned about germs, you can have the rest."

"I'm not," Fleur said flatly. Didn't stop her from casting a wordless Scorugify charm on the top before drinking out of it. Aurore grinned and was about to respond when a loud crack happened right next to us. Aurore shrieked, but Fleur seemed to have the same idea as me when she drew her wand and I drew an incendiary double barreled shotgun. But then the person who Apparated immediately made me lower my guns.

"Dobby? That you? What in the-" I said before I was cut off by the elf hugging me around the middle.

"It is Dobby, sir! It is!" the house elf exclaimed. Aurore and Fleur both looked at me strangely just like everyone in the bar, but I was too subdued by Dobby's clothing to respond. If clowns dressed like Dobby did, they'd instantly be better at their jobs.

"Erm... hi Dobby," I finally said. "I have to ask. What are you doing here?"

"Dobby works at Hogwarts now! Mister Harry wishes to see you," Dobby told me.

"He say what about?" I questioned, my look somewhat serious.

"He told me to say Missus Granger's name and 'kitchens.' He said that you would figure the rest out sir," Dobby said, making me grin immediately.

"Hermione, you are a piece of work," I muttered while shaking my head.

"Mind introducing us to your friend?" Aurore asked, pointing at Dobby.

"Erm... Dobby, introduce yourself to the ladies," I said in a somewhat subdued tone, gesturing to Fleur and Aurore.

"Oh, forgive Dobby for his lack of manners. I is Dobby. And are you Mister Morgan's mistresses?" Dobby asked, making me look at Dobby like a fifty foot beanstalk had suddenly grew out of his ears and smacked me in the face. Fleur and Aurore had similar gobsmacked expressions on their faces.

"No Dobby. I hardly know them that well," I told the house elf gently.

"Oh, forgive me sir. I meant no disrespect. It is just not all of that uncommon sir," Dobby said, his voice going somewhat quieter.

"Just do me a favor and don't mention anything like that again," I told him. I shuddered at hearing Fred and George's mouths had they been around...

"Yessir. But Harry Potter insisted on seeing you immediately sir," Dobby said.

"Um..." I glanced at Fleur and Aurore, who both nodded. "Sure. I guess I could set aside the time. Just get us there."

"Yessir. Dobby insists you prepares yourself for the journey," Dobby said as he took ahold a part of my trench coat before Disapparating. I then felt the sensation of being squeezed down a very narrow tube. I shook my shoulders once I realized that we were in the kitchens now.

"I see you got my message," Harry said.

"When that 'message' comes in the form of a house elf wearing a tea cozy, a tie patterned with horseshoes, and a pair of children's soccer shorts and socks, it's kind of hard not to get," I said with a dry tone. "What is it you need?"

"Winky is here," Harry said, pointing over near the fire.

"Is that it?" I questioned.

"Of course not. Wouldn't have disturbed you otherwise. When we were talking to her, she let slip a few things concerning Crouch. Well, more specifically, Bagman. I'm not sure if I'm reading too much into this, but she mentioned that Bagman's a bad wizard. It could just be about his position as a Head of Department, but I don't think so," Harry told me, causing a more serious look to cross my face.

"What do you reckon Crouch meant when he told Winky that? He seems like a alright sort of guy other than his lax attitude about, well _everything,"_ I questioned.

"Dunno. I've been thinking about that advice you gave me. About how when people seem like they obey the law or are on the right side of things, that gives them all the more reason to keep their lawbreaking a secret," Harry said, making me nod in satisfaction.

"Glad you're listening. Given this bit of news, we may want to focus on Bagman. Keep as much of an eye as you can on him. If he offers you advice again, take it. Take the opportunity to prod him a little. See what you can find out. If it comes down to it, we'll ask around; see if there are a few things that people know about him that he would rather keep on the down low," I explained to Harry making him nod.

"Would sirs like food?" one of the Hogwarts elves suddenly said, making us both suddenly look at the elf. We then made eye contact with each other before looking back at the elf.

"Yes. Thank you for offering," I said politely. The elf beamed as if I had just given them a glorious gift. I mentally laughed. We were the ones leaving the room with our pockets stuffed with sweets. But then I felt a tug on my shoulder.

"Would Mister like for Dobby to return him to his lady friends?" he said in a whisper close to my ear. This missed Ron and Hermione, but Harry, who I had trained to use his ears better, raised an eyebrow.

"Yes, I would appreciate that," I said, pointedly ignoring the look Harry was giving me. Dobby nodded with a grin on his face before making us disappear with a pop. I ended up appearing in front of them when they were halfway back to the castle. I turned to face Dobby to thank him, but he had already gone.

"We didn't think you were coming back," Fleur said.

"I bring gifts," I said, handing each of them a cake.

"Glorious," Aurore said dryly before unwrapping and biting into a cake. Fleur shook her head.

"No zank you," she said. I shrugged before grabbing the cake myself and taking a bite into it. I then looked at Fleur with a focused gaze. Something about her seemed familiar...

"What?" she questioned. I was silent for a few seconds until until I recalled my time in wizarding France. Now I remembered why.

"I recognize your face now. You're Appoline Delacour's daughter, aren't you?" I questioned.

"'Ow'd you-"

"I made a visit down to France recently. Mostly for private reasons that involved the Muggle world, but I made a stop in wizarding France as well. You look a lot like your mother," I said idly as I bit into a cake.

"That doesn't tell me 'ow you know who my parents are," Fleur said, making me frown slightly more. She seemed rather defensive.

"Their faces were in the paper after a press conference. Conference concerning future Muggle involvements. Apparently my appearance in wizarding society isn't just making Britain take notice. It simply caught my attention. I told you. I have more pressing and less pathetic things to do than spy," I told her, my tone somewhat icy now. Fleur looked immediately looked apologetic at my explanation.

"You gotta understand. She's not exactly used to the idea of someone knowing who her family is off pure coincidence," Aurore said.

"Oh, I know. But when I say that I have better things to do other than spy on someone in such a pathetic fashion, I meant it. You have no reason to believe anything that I say. Believe me, I understand that. But you will not pull me in whichever direction you feel suits you the best at the time if you insist on not trusting me. You either trust me to be honest or you don't. Pick," I said, crossing my arms. The slight cream filling that was in the corner of my mouth did nothing to lessen my glare. I also didn't know why i felt the need to be so unnecessary about the situation.

To my surprise, she put her arms around me in an embrace. My arms were positioned weird considering I wasn't expecting her to hug me.

"If you would mind my asking, what in the hell was that for? And I don't need you to speak for her," I told Aurore firmly. "I want to hear it from her."

"Eet is... rare. Very rare to find anyone 'oo does not wish to get close to me because of beauty or personal purposes," Fleur said, clearing her throat. "Eet's rare, but eet gets a rather warm reception from me. I appreciate zings like zat."

"Trust me, she nearly strangled me in a hug when I told her I had no idea who her parents were. It seems she had a suspicion that I would ask her for favors concerning her parents or something," Aurore said before putting a hand over her heart. "I'm still hurt Fleur. Really. The pain never went away."

"Do me a favor Aurore, and do as some people say... stuff it," Fleur said, making me as well as Aurore chuckle.

"You two are a show. Also, can I have my arms back? If you plan on doing the second task like this, then fine. I'll just have to be put on nerve stimulants," I said dryly, making Fleur release me.

"You are very much like Aurore. Only..."

"Blunter and drier?" I questioned rhetorically.

"Zose are two of ze adjectives," Fleur said.

"I'm not as cruel as him. Did I mention he wanted to dropkick me in the boobs?" Aurore questioned.

"I lost count," Fleur said dryly, making me chuckle. "Excellent. Now I'm doing eet."

"'Grats. You're becoming more like me," I said, gladly finishing the cake in my hands with a final bite.

"And you're becoming more like me. Soon we'll all just be mixed copies of each other," Aurore said.

"There would only be one benefit to that," I said.

"And zat would be?" Fleur questioned.

"Having the same kinks. Duh," I said, making Aurore roar with laughter as I had to dodge a stunning spell aimed directly at my skull from Fleur. "Quick hands. But I'm quicker."

"Apparently. I would've gotten most people with zat," Fleur said, pocketing her wand.

"I'm not most people. Most people don't launch themselves into dragon's eyes," I said, tossing Aurore another cake before starting on a pie.

"That was amazingly awesome," Aurore said with an idle bite.

"I did not see. Dragon scalded my thigh, so I ended up in ze injury wing," Fleur said.

"It was the right combination of recklessness and no regard for self, while being cool at the same time," Aurore told her.

"Sounds like me. What'd you do for your dragon?" I asked, causing Fleur to immediately hold Aurore in place with a stare. She raised her hands in surrender. Fleur obviously wanted to tell this one herself.

"Alright, alright. I get the idea. You want to tell it," Aurore said, lowering her hands.

"Yes, well anyway... I used zis French song amplified by magic. Made eet fall asleep in no time at all," Fleur said, sounding quite proud of herself.

"Lemme guess. It breathed out fire when it was snoring," I said, making Fleur's cheeks turn slightly pink and Aurore have to hold back a laugh.

"I was not expecting it!" Fleur said defensively, making me laugh loudly.

"I wasn't accusing you. I certainly can't talk given how I let a dragon hit me in the ribs so I could get the necessary force I needed to launch myself in its eye," I said before taking another bite of pie.

"I suppose..." Fleur trailed.

"Anyway, you figured your egg yet?" Aurore asked.

"I'm not helping you figure it out. Regardless of my unwillingness to be in this tournament, I do want to win," I told her.

"Oh, I get it. So you would rather take a victory in this tournament over the love of two lovely girls?" Aurore asked.

"I'm sorry, do you look like Harry, Ron, or Hermione? Cause those are pretty much the only people I have that I would help with this tournament, " I told her. That wasn't entirely true, but I preferred not to talk about attachments to other people. There are just some habits that just don't break.

"Ouch. That hurts," Aurore said, mock putting a hand over her heart. But it happened to be the hand that was holding a cake, so she ended up getting cream on her blouse. "Dammit."

"It's not like you're not a witch," I said idly. Aurore wiped her blouse clean with a wave of her wand.

"I still don't like getting sticky substances on me," Aurore said. I idly bit into the last piece of my pie. I wasn't even going to comment on that.

"Stop trying to bait 'im," Fleur said, nudging her friend. She laughed while I shook my head.

"Fleur could not have been more right about you. You do the most pretty much all of the time," I said, making Fleur smirk as some show of victory.

"Told you," she said. I finally looked around and noticed we ended up outside of the Beauxbatons carriage.

"Well, that happened. I suppose I'll see you later," I said, waving at them.

"Come on inside," Fleur said, making me eye the carriage somewhat hesitantly.

"You sure? I really don't wanna test whether I can knock Madame Maxime out in a fistfight," I said, making Aurore snort.

"Eet is fine. Besides, whether or not she will admit eet, she likes you. You do speak our language perfectly, after all," Fleur said, making me snort.

"If that was the way to every native's heart, I'd have everyone kissing my boots," I said dryly, making both Fleur and Aurore snicker. "Fine. But if anyone barges in, I'm disappearing on the spot."

"Very well," Fleur said before pushing open the door.

The Beaxubatons carriage certainly had the look you would expect it to have. Chairs with comfortable cushioning with fine wood supports. Light gray marble floors that felt like standing in the center of a mansion. Light blue curtains to windows that looked as silky as anything. The whole thing looked, felt, and most like was, very expensive.

"I'm impressed," I said, looking around. Both Aurore and Fleur smiled.

"Zis is nothing compared to ze castle itself. Eet is even more graceful zan zis," Fleur said, gesturing an airy hand around the room.

"How'd you eat during the travel?" I asked, still surveying the room with wandering eyes.

"You are not ze only one 'oo 'as 'ouse elves to service you," Fleur said, with a clap of her hands. With a sudden crack, about three dozen house elves appeared as if it were an uprising of the ankle biters.

"Only one is necessary. Ze rest of you may return to your duties," Fleur told the elves before pointing at one specific elf wearing a light black, almost gray tea towel with the Beauxbatons crest on it. What is with people giving house elves tea towels? Suppose it was better than the pillow case Dobby got when he was with the Malfoys. Far better, actually.

"You hungry? For something besides sweets," Aurore asked me.

"No thank you," I told her. She simply shrugged. I guess Fleur and Aurore were both eating, but my thoughts immediately became preoccupied with what Winky could've possibly meant about Bagman being bad. The immoral things he did were mentioned by no one. He seemed like an exceptionally nice person when it came to everyone. Even scum like Skeeter. Maybe Bagman did something particularly bad that Crouch didn't want to let go. Then again, I still had the belief that people didn't often change their spots. That came with wrestling an entire country's crime for two years before dealing with another's. And I'm still dealing with the scraps today. Believe me, I still knew the statistics. I had no reason to change my tune.

"Shall I offer a Knut for your thoughts?" Fleur questioned.

"Make it a Sickle, and I'm in," I said with a small smile before it disappeared. "No, I'm more concerned about this tournament. I'm convinced that our names getting in that goblet was no accident. And if whoever put in there is still lurking around the castle."

"You worry too much," Aurore said, causing the frown on my face to turn into a rather grim look.

"I tell this to people all the time, but they don't worry enough," I said, resisting the urge to draw a blunt. Not sure if they cared for me smoking in here. "Not worrying enough leads to problems. Problems that stack onto the problems you already have."

"Someone put your names in the goblet without your consent, that is for certain. Do they think that you would die from the result of these tasks? Considering the emphasis on security, I don't believe that they would let a champion die from these tasks if they can prevent it," Aurore said before smirking. "Besides, you and your dear child showed your dragons what for."

"That may be true, but I'm not above looking out for any sign of a wand pointed my way. Trust me when I say that it wouldn't surprise me, but I'm on the lookout for anything and anyone that might want to hurt us. They will be dealt with if I have anything to say about it," I said darkly before shaking my head. "It's not necessarily a subject I would like to focus on, but it's a subject I feel like I have to. That's the family motto: 'We don't always do what we want to do, but we always do what we have to do.' I believe it was reference to be the black woman's motto in a movie I saw once. Either way, it's true for anyone who has the tiniest feeling of responsibility."

"You explained that you had never truly been a child," Fleur said.

"Parents died at thirteen while the rest of my family was already dead. From natural causes or not so natural ones. Drunk driving, overdose, heart attack, robbery gone bad. It's all the same. I refused to be put into an orphanage. Government didn't care. I was literally the last living member of my family. If I died from a failure to take care of myself, they'd get all my family's assets. Trust me when I say that there were a lot of them," I said, laughing. But it was one of my hollow, bitter laughs that I always used when I talked about subjects like this. "The others know about all this. Told em like twenty times. Told it so many times that it doesn't even feel like a pained memory anymore. More like a something to go on a history timeline."

"Why are you telling us?" Fleur said, making me chuckle.

"Because," I said with a short pause. "I can." Aurore and Fleur both frowned at me slightly and I just chuckled and shook my head.

"I'm just glad I learned to take care of myself; to wield my money wisely. It all came down to the good parenting I got. Now I'm very successful. More money than I know what to do with. Titles. Fame. Acknowledgement. Respect," I said before all trace of humor disappeared on my face and was replaced by a rather ugly look. I had the mood swings of a pregnant woman sometimes. "Like I give a damn about any of it. I use it, but I don't care about it. Never did."

I looked up, and Aurore and Fleur were look at me with something akin to sympathy. The looks irritated me.

"Don't look at me like I'm an injured puppy. That's very degrading," I said, trying to make sure my voice didn't come out in a snap. Though it did come out in a rather irritated growl that was something akin to how Mad-Eye Moody would've said it. "Don't sit around feeling sorry for me. I'm not a glorious angel that dropped down from Heaven's pearly gates. If anything, I'm something the devil spat out of Hell because I had the remotest bit of a conscience as well as morality. You have no idea what I use some of that money for, do you?"

They were silent. They seemed to have nothing to say. I only gave the remotest smile that looked more like a very nasty grimace.

"The death penalty for example. The generator they use for the electric chair? I gave it a power supply that never runs out. Lethal injections? I make it less expensive to buy."

"Oh, sure I've done things like give cars indefinite safety and made a lot more things much safer for people to use, but that's for the people that deserve them. People who don't go around killing, pillaging, torturing, and raping. For them, there is no mercy; no sympathy to give. So I make sure that if they try to do so, they'll be lucky to get away with anything less than a gaping hole in their chest."

I was on my feet now and my voice had come into a rather low growl. I turned to the side as to not see their expressions while I blinked away the memories. Somehow, I ended up back out there. A world where things weren't kind and merciful. A world I tackled head on with merciless cruelty. Not initially, but I learned to. Sometimes the monster inside me breaks its way to the surface.

"Forgive me," I said as I turned back to face them. I couldn't read anything from the expressions on their faces. If they were horrified, they did a good job at hiding it. "I tend to relapse like this when the subject comes around. I'll take my leave. Just trust me when I say that mercy is deserved for the very few in this world. Hell, I'm definitely not on that list. Mercy that the government insisted on giving killers and rapists years ago has done nothing but help destroy my family. Now there's no one but me left. Think about that before you even try to judge me."

I then properly stood straight up, nodded respectfully at the girls that were sitting down before walking out of the carriage. I suppose any hope of a friendship I had with them was ruined once I stated to ramble on about how hardly anyone in this world deserves mercy. I suppose it was a good thing. Can't really befriend someone you don't know everything about.

On the small chance that they agreed with me... well, it'd certainly be an interesting sight. Then again, I hadn't met anyone who is as fucked in the head as me. Except maybe Moody. Guy certainly had a few screws loose. Then I began to think about what Snape said about me needing therapy.

I almost laughed out loud. Very nearly. People like me didn't need therapy. We needed the peace and love that we didn't have before we turned into what we are now. But guess what? There was no hope of that. At least as far as the peace part went. There was no peace left in haunted minds and vague memories of happier times.

There was only... acceptance. I accepted long ago what I am. I am a vengeful fucker who believes in very little purity in the world. And I believe in teaching that philosophy. To Harry, to Hermione, to whoever needed to know this. But unlike me, there was hope for them. Hope that they could one day live in a day and age where you didn't need security to make sure your home was safe. That you could look forward and never have to watch your back. For me, that hope disappeared when I buried Gwen.

 _"Going back to the past,"_ my mind scolded. _"Tsk. Tsk. Do you ever learn?"_

My mind made a habit of acting like a very irritating sibling when it came to going over the past. It was like a gag reflex that I learned to develop.

"What is it?" Harry asked. When I walked back into the common room, that was the first thing he asked me. Pretty much because he was the only one who could tell when I didn't have it all together.

"Reliving the past. It's not necessarily something I like to do," I told him as I took a seat. Hermione and Ron looked over at me as I rubbed my forehead. "Stop looking at me. It's not a big deal."

The stares stopped, but I'm not exactly sure I believed my own words. For a while keeping the past back helped. Like restraining the urge to vomit. It'd come back up every now and then, but it was good enough to prevent yourself blowing chunks all over the place. Now with this change of, well... everything in my life, I was beginning to think different.

Very few people knew of my love for Gwen. It was past tense cause she was dead, but the point was made. Only Maman and Papa knew the story of what happened. After all, it was their daughter. The whole time I just kept the past back. Holding back the vomit. But maybe what I needed to do was just puke all over the fucking floor. But unfortunately, I was fucking stubborn.

"What happened?" Harry whispered in my ear.

"Later, ok?" I assured him. He nodded. The common turned out to be surprisingly quiet the rest of the day. I wasn't even sure I was going to keep that promise.


	14. Chapter 14 - Ball Dates

I tapped my fingers on my desk as I was waiting for the lesson to be over. This tended to happen a lot; me finishing my work before some people barely got past the second page. Professor Vector then began to go into some discussion about the approaching Yule Ball, which uninterested me. As soon as the bell rung, I hopped to my feet instantly.

"Mr. Morgan?" Professor Vector suddenly said. My foot halted in the middle of taking a step and I moved to the side so that the other students could get out. "A word please?"

I nodded and walked back over to her while rolling my neck to crack it.

"Yes?" I questioned.

"As per the Headmaster's instruction, all champions are to show up with their partners..."

"One second," I interrupted politely. "Did you say partners?"

"Yes. As in your dance partners. Traditionally, the champions and their partners open the ball. So it is your duty to find yourself a partner," Professor Vector told me, making me groan.

"I was plan on using that time to work on my clue for the next task," I told her. I hadn't spent much time on it, which was awfully reckless of me. I had spent a little too much time with Fleur and Aurore. Even though that had more than likely changed given the rant I shot at them.

"I am sorry for that, but it is in fact necessary for you to attend," Professor Vector said.

"I won't shoot the messenger. Thanks for conveying the message," I told her, walking out. Not only was I not a big fan of attending formal events like this, but the list of people I actually wanted to take was smaller than the list of people I could take. I shook my head at the fact that it was necessary for champions to attend.

"Robert!" a voice suddenly said, making me blink and actually pay better attention as to what was around me. It was Aurore. I blinked at her. They didn't often come in the castle other than for feasts and such.

"Hey. What are you doing here?" I asked.

"Warm welcome, I must say," Aurore said dryly. I only blinked at her again.

"I made the assumption that after what happened back in the carriage, that you would most likely never want to talk to me again," I told her bluntly.

"It certainly raised eyebrows, but it's not as bad as you seem to take it. People view the world a different way given their experiences," Aurore said in a logical tone.

"You got that line from Fleur, didn't you?" I questioned, fighting the smirk that played on my lips. She glared at me, which caused the grin I was trying to hold back to break free. Soon her attempt at a glare turned into a smile of her own.

"That's not the point. Just saying that we're not judging you based on how you view the world," Aurore said. I nodded in satisfaction. Looks like the 'most likely' was beaten out. I was glad for that.

"Alright, then I'll make a habit of following up next time I start ranting," I told her.

"Good. Now, I could use a favor," Aurore asked, making me raise an eyebrow. "Ask Fleur to the ball."

"Huh?" I questioned.

"I know you know about the ball. All champions do," Aurore told me.

"And I just found out like five minutes ago. Less, really. Why are you asking me that?" I asked.

"Because I think for once, Fleur needs a date that won't drool all over her," Aurore said, making me snort.

"The list of us is very short," I said dryly.

"Which is why I want you to take her," Aurore told me.

"And if I wanted to take someone else?" I asked.

"It's something you don't have to do. I just ask that you think about it," Aurore told me, making me raise an eyebrow. I had to admit. I only saw myself really wanting to go with either her or Aurore. Even though I had the idea that they thought I was a sadistic bastard. Which I was. Not the point. The point was that this favor of hers wasn't even giving me time to decide.

"I'll do it," I told her, making Aurore smile.

"Thanks. You didn't plan on asking anyone else, did you?" Aurore asked, her look somewhat hesitant.

"Don't feel bad. It was either going to be you or her. Guess the deciding didn't take very long," I told her, make her pause in her movements for a split second.

"I'm not a big fan of events like this anyway," Aurore said.

"Neither am I. It's only necessary for me to attend cause I'm a champion. I'd rather spend the time working on my egg," I told her.

"Strange. Fleur said the exact same thing," Aurore said.

"Then she has sense. But I'll ask her once I get the chance. That is, if she isn't going with anyone else. If that happens, I don't know who the hell I'm going to ask. Maybe Katie Bell. I like her a fair bit," I said, idly voicing my thoughts.

"Have fun," Aurore said with a smirk. Which means she definitely heard what I said about not enjoying these kind of events.

"Oh, shuddup," I said, trying and failing to get the smile off my face. "Was that it?"

"Not exactly. Do you know how to dance?" Aurore asked.

"Yeah," I said simply.

"Oh," Aurore said, her tone slightly subdued.

"What, you thought that I couldn't?" I asked.

"A little?" Aurore questioned, making me roll my eyes. "I expected you to be the type to be good with his arms, not his legs."

"I'm good with both. Strong and flexible. Can't get better legs than those," I told her. She looked at my legs with a raised eyebrow.

"Your legs look like painted tree trunks in cargo pants," Aurore told me.

"They're not that thick," I said, turning over my legs. "I'd say about as thick as a particularly thick tree branch. That's about it."

"Uh huh. Anyway, that was it. Um... talk to you later then," Aurore said somewhat awkwardly.

"Will do," I said, giving her a two fingered salute before walking off. I have no idea why I agreed in the first place, but I just did. Again, it kind of robbed my time to decide, which I couldn't decide whether or not it was good or bad. It made deciding a lot easier, but had I taken the time to decide, who would I really have asked? Wasn't really losing out though. Fleur was an outstanding woman.

I decided to go ahead and give the egg a proper look out while I was sitting on a patch of grass. I should've started on this thing as soon as I got the task. And I most likely would've had I not met Fleur and Aurore. Better late than never though. Would've been screwed if I never do it.

I opened the egg, and I got the same loud screeching noise as before. It might have been a magical language that is transferred through goddamn screaming. No, that couldn't have been it. Maybe if I found a way to muffle the noise...

Summoning a shovel to my hand, I dug a small hole and put the egg under there before putting the dirt over it. Very faintly, I only heard that the screaming had dimmed. Maybe not through dirt.

I pulled it out and shook the dirt off before taking a proper look at the egg while trying not to let the sound deafen me. Taking a proper look at the inside, I saw it looked like... water? Underwater maybe? Ok, to the lake then.

I went towards the edge of the lake and opened it under the water. Now it didn't sound like screaming. It sounded like... music. So I laid on my stomach before dipping my head in the water so I could hear the words.

 _"Come seek us where our voices sound,_

 _We cannot sing above the ground,_

 _And while you re searching, ponder this:_

 _We've taken what you'll sorely miss,_

 _An hour long you'll have to look,_

 _And to recover what we took,_

 _But past an hour- the prospect's black,_

 _Too late, it's gone, it wont come back"_

I stuck my head out of the water and tried to shake it free of water as I stood up and closed the egg. Now to do some thinking.

 _"'Come seek us where our voices sound, we cannot sing above the ground.' That definitely means merpeople. Or any type of underwater civilization,"_ I thought.

 _"'And while you're searching, ponder this: We've taken what you'll surely miss.' So that means they'll take something from me that I care about. I don't know how they'll manage that because I have anything that's not living injected with nanites. But they might do that, which I can't do anything about. I know Dumbledore won't let anyone die, so that'll be fine."_

 _"'An hour long you'll have to look,_ _to recover what we took._ _But past an hour- the prospect's black._ _Too late, it's gone, it wont come back.' All that means is that I have an hour to get whatever I'm looking for out of there. Ok, that makes that so much easier,"_ I finished as I continued to shake my head free of water. And I already had a solution. Time to get to building.

"Stupid..." I said, smacking my head hard to get the water out of my ear. I succeeded. "Ah. Much better."

"You go swimming?" someone behind me asked. I turned to face the person, and it was Fleur. I was kind of hoping I would run into her on the way here.

"Sort of," I said, making my egg disappear from my hand.

"'ow are you?" Fleur asked.

"Can't complain, I suppose. And about yesterday..."

"Don't 'ave to mention eet. Eet is fine. As a person 'oo 'as lost family to crime, I suppose your outlook is understandable," Fleur said.

"That's interesting to hear," I said idly.

"In any case, me and Aurore would enjoy continuing to talk wiz you," Fleur said.

"Me too. But there is a question I want to ask you," I said.

"Feel free," Fleur said.

"Will you go the ball with me?" I asked.

"Well, zat was fast," Fleur said somewhat dryly.

"I'm not one to beat around the bush. Will you?" I asked. Then she smiled at me.

"Yes. Yes I will," she said, making me smile as well.

"Alright then. I solemnly swear that I will not drool over you," I said, holding a hand out at my side.

"We'll see," Fleur said with a smirk.

"Now, have you figured out your egg out?" I asked her.

"Yes, but I'm not going to tell you what eet is," Fleur said, a small smirk on her face.

"Don't need you to," I said before an understanding look came on her face.

"Zat's why you were under ze water," Fleur said.

"Got it in one. And I already know what I want to do. I just need time," I said.

"Zen by all means, don't let me keep you from working. Zere are still a few zings I need to do as well. 'ow shall we do zis?" Fleur asked.

"How about we meet up near the entrance of the Great Hall? Cause I'm more than sure that's where the Ball is taking place," I said.

"And if eet's not?" Fleur questioned.

"Then I'll head to your carriage twenty minutes prior to the start of the Ball and I'll walk with you there," I said.

"Zat sounds suitable," Fleur said with a nod.

"Then we are in agreement. I have to say, I rather like the idea of keeping the whole thing a surprise. What about you?" I asked with a smile.

"Oh, I agree. Not exactly sure 'ow my fellow classmates will react, but ze general reaction will be amusing all ze same," Fleur said.

"Then I'll see you during the Ball then?" I asked. She nodded and I waved her goodbye for heading back towards the common room.

 _"Get it in your head,"_ I drilled into my mind. _"Not a date. No use getting attached."_ I had the strangest feeling I would try, and most likely succeed in getting myself attached to her. Granted it was kind of hard not to. I knew an amazing person when I saw them. Hard not to get attracted to people like that. It wasn't the physical beauty. It was just the beauty of the inside. A type of purity. The beauty of the simple things. The little things.

"Dad?" Harry suddenly asked when I walked in the common room, making me turn to face him. Goodness, I was distracted.

"Yeah?" I asked.

"I need advice," Harry asked, making me raise an eyebrow.

"On what? I figure you have most things down," I said.

"Well, not in this case," Harry said.

"Well, what's the..." I stopped myself and then looked at his behavior. Twisting his hands in slight nervousness and then there was the news of the Ball coming... "Ah. I understand. Is this advice about asking a certain Ms. Granger to the ball?" His cheeks went slightly red, but he nodded. I smiled.

"While I'm proud of you for getting a move on in that aspect, what makes you think I'm good for that kind of advice?" I asked.

"Given how you have the ability to make married women indirectly flirt with you, I think you're the best person to go to for advice," Harry said. I knew he was referencing Seamus' mother. Jesus, I was never going to live that down.

"Not really. But in my opinion, just ask her. Knowing Hermione, the worst she'll do is politely say no. But I wouldn't imagine she wouldn't have a reason to say no unless she's already going with someone else," I told her.

"It's simple and it'll work. That's what I get for overthinking things," Harry said, smacking his forehead.

"It's alright. That's what I'm here for. Teach you until you learn these things," I said, putting a hand on his shoulder.

"You heard about having to ask a girl to the ball right?" Harry asked.

"Yeah. I already asked Fleur to the ball, and she said yes," I said evenly.

"Always got to shoot for the best, huh?" Harry questioned with a grin. I only smirked.

"Of course. I'll let it be a surprise for everyone else, so do me a favor and keep it under wraps," I told him.

"I'm damn good at Occlumency. No way I'm gonna let it slip to anyone," Harry said, making me smile.

"That's my boy," I said with some pride as I sat down. "Now give me a moment. I need to run over some plans."

"Finally figured out the egg, huh?" Harry asked.

"I figured it out quickly. The matter of actually trying to figure it out just took forever for me to do," I reminded him.

"That's right. Because you like hanging out with your _lady_ friends," Harry teased.

"Are you going to be quiet and let me work or am I going to have to _shank a bitch?"_ I said with the last words being in a sing song tone.

"Hey, I'm not judging Casanova. It's not your fault if you're into more than one woman," he said with a grin. I then put a hand around him started ruffling his already unimaginably unruly hair.

"You are unbelievable!" I exclaimed with a grin. He wiggled out of my grip and we just started laughing together.

"You two look happy," Hermione said, walking from down the steps with a smile on her face. Harry looked at her and his look got a little awkward, but he still smiled at her. I did as well.

"Yes. I suppose we are. We're able to finally be happy despite being sucked into this tournament," I said with a smile. "Where's Ron?"

"Said he's trying to go off and ask someone to the ball," Hermione said, making me snort a little.

"Lucky girl. Ron has the most immaculate manners of any person I've ever met," I said, making both Hermione and Harry snort from my comment. "Anyway, you heard about the ball?"

"Yeah, I have. Are you going?" Hermione asked me.

"Have to. Mandatory for all champions to attend... with a partner," I said.

"Like that'll stop you, Casanova," Hermione said, making Harry roar with laughter.

"You too?! I am not that bad!" I exclaimed, holding my hands.

"Need I remind you what happened with Seamus' mother? You weren't even trying. If you were, it'd be different," Hermione said, making me groan.

"Am I _ever_ going to live that down?" I said, putting a hand on my forehead.

"Nope. You got a woman, who knew you were over ten years younger than her to indirectly flirt with you. If that's not a Casanova trait, I don't know what is," Hermione said with a wide grin, making Harry laugh harder.

"What is this we hear about dear Robert being a Casanova?" Fred said, suddenly walking into the common room.

"You have _immaculate_ timing, you know that?" I said, looking at them in disbelief.

"It's a gift. Now what's this about you being a Casanova? The ladies on the Quidditch team are already very much attracted to you," George said, batting his eyelashes. I rolled my eyes.

"But we heard Seamus this time. Don't tell me that you're attracting more than female company?" Fred asked with a raised eyebrow. Both Hermione and Harry started laughing when I smacked Fred on the back of his head.

"No, it was something that happened right before the Quidditch Cup. We found Seamus' with his mum when we were wandering the Irish section. Don't ask me how, but this charming son of a bitch got his mother to indirectly end up flirting with him," Harry said with a grin. I sighed and put my right hand on my face once Fred and George began bursting out laughing.

"So what? You reckon you'll be Seamus' new dad?" Fred said, holding his stomach from his laughter.

"You're going to mess with him about that, aren't you," I said flatly.

"Oh, how could we not? I didn't know his mum was into nineteen year olds. I guess she likes em young," George said with a roguish wink.

"And I look like I'm in my mid twenties. Does that count for nothing?" I asked.

"Nope! She knew your age! Doesn't count!" Fred said with a wide grin.

"You are all insufferable," I said, throwing my head back to look at the ceiling.

"And we love you too. And apparently, so does Seamus' mom," Harry said.

"HARRY!" I bellowed, making everyone burst out laughing. "While I don't mind being at the butt of a joke, can you not bring it up every. Five. Fucking. Seconds?!"

"Alright, alright. We're done," Harry said, holding his hands while trying to get his laughter to subside.

"Good. Because don't forget. Just because I like you kid does _not_ mean I won't take a belt to your ass. Remember that," I said, pointing a finger at him.

"Oh, you're old fashioned," Fred said, staring at me.

"Damn straight," I said, putting my feet up. "I can be your friend and I can be your dad too."

"Haven't forgotten. Regardless of my many, many jokes about you, I respect you more than anyone," Harry said with a sincere smile. I smiled and there it was again. That warm feeling of pride. This is what it was like to have a child to love. I didn't help conceive him, but hell, that doesn't matter to me.

"Is he legally part of your family?" George suddenly asked.

"Yup. Papers are signed and everything. And thanks to Rita Skeeter, everyone and their mothers know that he's my ward. He's a Morgan, but I don't let him drop his biological surname. No, everyone still knows what family he was born from," I said.

"Oh, but I'll make sure no one gets it twisted. I'm a Morgan too. And we Morgans are tough sons of bitches," Harry said, tightening a fist.

"You're goddamn right. This world throws whatever it can at us and we take it," I said, holding my hands out with my right leg crossed over my right knee.

"I'm sure what you two have been through would make a very interesting series," Hermione said.

"Oh, I'm sure in some dimension we're just a figment of someone's imagination," I said with a grin.

* * *

 _"Oxygen supply... Missile launcher... wrist mounted machine guns and blades... thrusters... electric discharges... plus there are still the regular weapons on my person..."_ I thought as I went over the design. _"Most of it will be summoned through digistruct methods and will appear on demand, and the Dragon's Teeth molder built into the suit will create the wrist mounted blades and guns when I need them... All while keeping an awesome armor look. Sort of like Iron's Man's suit. Just with no core in the middle and it's a solid, shiny silver."_

 _"Mask looks ridiculous in my opinion. No, how about red pupils for the AS vision when I need it and it forms to fit the head of the user perfectly. Comes apart when a certain point is hit with my fingerprint... All comes together in a full mask with a skull shape... Weaponry, check. Badass design, check. Alright. Just have to run the design into my database and have one of my factories put it together."_

"Ok, that's done," I said, setting the hard drawing down.

"What are you making?" Harry asked.

"A suit," I told him. Harry stood up from where he was sitting and looked at the design before nodding in satisfaction.

"Nice. Badass look," he said.

"Thanks. It's part of the charm. Now I just have to send a digital plot of the suit through my database, and I have private factories that'll construct it for me. At the rate it builds stuff, it'll be ready before the day of the ball," I said, putting the hard drawing of the suit in my pocket before summoning a book to my hand. Some French book Fleur gave me about French wizarding history. It was in French, but like that mattered.

"Awesome. I decided on the Gillyweed. I studied a little bit of Mermish so I could be able to cast simple charms in the form," Harry said somewhat dully. I frowned as I put my hand in between the book to save my page.

"What's wrong?" I asked in a concerned tone.

"I asked Hermione. She's already going with someone," he said in the same dull tone.

"Damn. I know it took you forever to finally approach her, but I'm pretty that's why that happened. Who with?" I asked.

"Krum. Bloody. Fucking. Viktor. Krum," Harry said, gritting his teeth. "Thought she couldn't half stand him at first."

"Hermione doesn't seem like the type to go back on what she said or lie to us, so I think he might've done something to change her mind," I said.

"Dammit," Harry said, his tone low.

"Anyone else you thought about going with?" I asked.

"I did think about Katie Bell. But she's got the hots for you," Harry said before a slight smirk crossed his face. "Casanova."

"Shuddup," I said with a grin on my face. "I'm already taken. Feel free to ask her."

"Nah. She asked someone else once she found out you were taken. Then I decided on asking Cho. She's going with Cedric," Harry said.

"No luck, huh?" I asked.

"No, I have luck. Just of the shit variety," Harry said sourly.

"Just keep trying. I highly doubt anyone would say no to you if they don't have a date," I said, going back to my book.

"Come on... come sit down," a soft voice said. My brows creased as I looked up to see an ashen-faced Ron being led in by Ginny who seemed to be torn between comfort and humor.

"What happened?" Harry asked, going over to the two of them while looking at Ron with a concerned look.

"He - er - just asked Fleur Delacour to go to the ball with him," Ginny said, catching my attention. I raised my eyebrows before looking over at Ron. I wasn't exactly worried about Ron taking my date from me, but I'm glad I asked her to the ball quickly. I daresay she's got nearly every guy at her feet asking her to the ball. I've gotten my fair share of invites as well. I politely turned them down, but it was weird how some of them looked like I had just crushed their dreams.

"You did what?" Harry questioned, his face formed into one of disbelief.

"I don't know what made me do it!" Ron gasped. "What was I playing at? There were people - all around - I've gone mad - everyone watching! I was just walking past her in the entrance hall - she was standing there talking with one of her friends - and it sort of came over me - and I asked her! She looked at me like I was dancing in me underpants or something. Didn't even answer. And then - I dunno - I just sort of came to my senses and ran for it."

"She's part Veela. The allure works on most dudes and causes them to do stupid stuff. Not exactly your fault," I said calmly as I turned a page in my book.

"How does it not work on you two?" Ron said, pointing at both me and Harry.

"Besides Occlumency, we have less of a focus on looks and more about what's on a person's inside. Nothing against you. Most guys at your age have a tendency to judge a proper date based on looks. But we're not your typical run of the mill guys," I said as I continued to roam my eyes over the book.

"Have you asked anyone yet?" Ron asked.

"Yes. I asked someone from Beaubaxtons, and they said yes," I said calmly.

"Well, then I know she's a looker. Who'd you ask? That black haired girl you hang with?" Ron asked.

"Her name is Aurore, and no. I didn't ask her. I want to make it a surprise," I said.

"Bet you he did ask her," Ron fake whispered to Harry, making me raise an eyebrow. But I only smirked. Wonder what his reaction would be to the fact that I landed a date with Fleur. But unlike him, I didn't ask her because she looks stunning. I asked her because I genuinely like her. And Aurore kind of pushed my decision forward a bit. Again, still was left wondering who I would've asked if I was left to think about it.

"If you think so," I said simply, turning another page. I was reading slower than normal because I was enjoying this situation.

"So you've got a date. What about you, mate? Anyone?" Ron asked, turning to Harry.

"I asked three people. All of them had dates," Harry said dully. Any trace of humor on Ginny's face disappeared when she heard that, and I hid my smirk behind my book.

"Rough mate," Ron said in a supportive tone as he put a hand on Harry's shoulder. "This is mad. We're the only ones left who haven't got anyone. Well, except Neville. Hey, guess who he asked? Hermione!"

"What?" Harry questioned.

"Yeah, I know!" Ron said, some of the color coming back into his face as he started to laugh. "He told me after Potions! Said she's always been really nice, helping him out with work and stuff, but she told him she was already going with someone. Ha! As if! She just didn't want to go with Neville... I mean, who would?"

"I don't think you have the right to talk about anyone when you did what you did with Fleur. Just saying," I said evenly.

"Thanks mate. Means a lot," Ron said flatly. I flashed him a thumbs up without taking my eyes off my book.

"Why weren't you three at dinner?" Hermione said, coming over to join us. But I noticed that when her eyes went to Harry, her eyes kind of scurried away from him guiltily.

"Was working on something for the second task," I said, raising a hand before gesturing to Ron and Harry. "As for these two, they were trying to get dates for the ball."

"Oh. Any luck?" Hermione asked. But her gaze was mostly on Harry.

"I tried to ask Fleur Delacour. That ended badly," Ron said sourly.

"I asked three people. They all had dates," Harry said, his look lingering on Hermione.

"Well, there's bound to be someone," she said, trying to pull together her supportive tone.

"I know there is," Harry said before turning to Ginny. "Ginny, I know this isn't in the best taste or situation, but do you want to go to the ball?"

"Um... sorry. I'm going with Neville. He asked me when Hermione said no, and I kind of wouldn't have been able to go to the ball otherwise..." Ginny said, her cheeks going pink.

"I've heard that people have been going with other people for the fourth time today. I have horrible luck for dates," Harry said with a groan.

"Yeah, you do. It gets worse before it gets better," I said, patting him on his shoulder briefly before going back to my book.

"Hermione... you're a girl..." Ron suddenly trailed.

"Yes, Ron. Women also have boobs while men, well, men in shape, don't. Anything else you need to know about a woman's body? Like what's between their legs?" I questioned rhetorically, making the others snicker. Ron's cheeks went slightly red as he glared at me.

"No, that's not what I mean. I mean you can come with one of us!" he exclaimed.

"No, I can't," Hermione snapped.

"Oh come on," Ron said impatiently, "We need partners. We're going to look really stupid if we haven't got any, everyone else has..."

"I can't come with you..." Hermione said, a blush making its way onto her face. "...because I'm already going with someone."

"No, you're not!" Ron said. "You just said that to get rid of Neville!"

I looked over to Harry, and his reaction was not a very pleasant one. He was flexing his fingers, and he was trying to hold back some anger that shone in his eyes. Oh, boy. This might get messy.

"Oh, did I?" Hermione said, her eyes flashing dangerously. "Just because it's taken you three years to notice, Ron, doesn't mean no one else has spotted I'm a girl!"

 _"Yeah. The first to notice is sitting next to me,"_ I thought as I saw Ron grin again.

"Okay, okay, we know you're a girl," he said. "That do? Will you come now?" I face palmed. He obviously did not get the hint.

"I've already told you!" Hermione said, pure anger in her tone. "I'm going with someone else!"

And she stormed off toward the girls' dormitories.

"She's lying," Ron said flatly, watching her go.

"She's not lying, Ron," Harry said through gritted teeth. I saw him breath through his nose, and knew he was beginning to employ Occlumency to calm himself down. But he was still as angry as he allowed himself to be.

"What? You too? How do you know?" Ron asked.

"Because she was the first person on my list to ask when she told me that she was already going with someone else. I must ask you to stop being an idiot sometimes, because it just enforces the fact that who I really wanted to go with is already taken, now doesn't it?" Harry said rhetorically before moving past him to get out of the common room.

Ron looked dumbfounded for a moment. As if he were a fish looking for water. Then he turned to me.

"Is that right? He's not just defending Hermione?" Ron asked.

"Nope. The day the ball was announced, he told me that he wanted to go with her. Even asked me for advice. Unfortunately, he was a bit slow on the uptake. I'm not shocked though. He's been making eyes at her for a couple years. Not a lot, but at times I see him just staring at her, some uncertainty there. So no. He's not just covering for Hermione," I said before I snapped my book shut. "Excuse me, but I have some designs to oversee. And listen to Harry's advice. Stop being an idiot."

Then I walked out of the common room with my book under my arm.


	15. Chapter 15 - The Yule Ball

Blowing out a puff of breath as I adjusted my cufflinks, I walked outside of my room before looking up at all of my fellow roommates, every one of them in dress robes. I was the only one wearing a regular suit. I doubted any of their dress robes cost hundreds of dollars.

"So?" I questioned, holding my hands out. "I know it's not a trench coat and combat pants, but how do look?"

"Like all of the money in your bank accounts," Harry said with a reassuring smile, making me grin.

"Then I must look good," I said, adjusting my tie a little.

"What's with the hair? Normally you have a type of low cut, but this time..."

"They're called waves. It's really a thing only capable with a black person's hair. I let it grow out a little so I could rock this look. I might start keeping my hair like this more often, but I dunno," I said as I saw with his arm connected with Parvati's. "Looking good Parvati. It's gratifying to see you not giggling for a change." Rather than a giggle, she let out more of a genuine laugh.

"Well thanks. Where's your date?" Parvati asked.

"You'll be meeting her once we get to the entrance hall," I said.

"I still can't believe you wouldn't tell us who you were going with," Ron said, looking slightly irked.

"I love keeping things a surprise. Trust me, it'll be more dramatic if I do so. Anyway, let's not waste any time. Shall we?" I questioned. Harry and Parvati were the first ones to oblige as they walked out of the portrait hole first.

The entrance hall was packed with students that were waiting for eight o clock to arrive. I let my eyes wander to try and find Fleur. She was nowhere to be seen. I tried not to frown. I hope I wouldn't be standing here looking like a fool. Then again, she was a champion as well. Even if this whole thing was somehow a very elaborate act, she wouldn't ruin herself to do so. But I'd like to believe she was coming for more genuine reasons rather than logical ones.

"Robert?" I suddenly heard a voice ask. I blinked, and the person asking me was Parvati's sister, Padma. It was weird how she sounded like she knew me forever. "Where's your date?"

"She should be here in a moment," I said, looking over to see that the Slytherins were starting to come down. Malfoy smirked when I he saw that I was not, in fact, accompanied by a partner.

"Well, well, well. Looks like the champion couldn't find himself a partner," he said snidely.

"Look better imbécile," a familiar voice said. Perfect timing.

"I expected you to beat me here," I said with a smile as I moved over to her. The dumbstruck look on Malfoy's did not escape me. I only grinned wider.

"Blame Aurore. She went on a rant about 'ow I better 'wow you' or she would move in to take you instead," Fleur said with a roll of her eyes.

"Nice friend you got there," I said sarcastically. Then with an idle glance, I, for what seemed like the first time in centuries, allowed myself to drink in a girl's appearance. I was not disappointed by what I saw.

Stunning was easily a very base word as to what she looked like. She was dressed in robes of silver-gray satin, the fabric hugging her body very nicely; almost as if it was a second skin. I noticed that rather than the traditional way her hair was tied up, it was, like Professor McGonagall so eloquently put, let down. It looked softer than the robes she was wearing while barely going an inch past her shoulders.

"You're staring," Fleur said with a playful smirk.

"I know. You look amazing," I said, wrapping my arm in hers.

"As do you. Muggle dress suit?" Fleur questioned.

"About as expensive as you can get. These look the best and are made to last," I told her.

"Eet fits you well. Better zan zat trench coat," Fleur said with a smirk, making me nudge her slightly.

"Hey, I like my trench coat," I said with a smile.

"Champions over here, please!" Professor McGonagall exclaimed, gesturing us over to her. We did exactly that, and I smiled at the sight of the girl that was accompanying Krum. At the very least, she looked happy.

"You know 'er?" Fleur asked.

"Take a closer look," I told her in a type of whisper. Fleur looked over and then a look of understanding came across her face.

"Ah. She looks very much different. But I recommend you take a look over zere," Fleur said, pointing an idle finger.

I looked over to where she was pointing, and I had to restrain a snicker. Never before had people looked at me with jealousy. Until now that is. A lot of the male students, regardless of the school, were glaring daggers at me. Therefore, their dates were glaring daggers at them. A lot of them got stomps on their feet, elbows in the gut, or slaps on the head for their troubles. I would've bet money if we weren't at a ball, curses would've been flying in some cases.

"Their dates don't seem very happy, do they?" I said with an amused tone.

"I was zinking more along ze lines of ze girls," Fleur said, pointing again. I then looked back at the same part. Not necessarily in the front, but more in the back of the crowd, to my surprise, I could see that several girls were eyeing me up and down. While glaring at Fleur as well.

"That surprises me," I said.

"I cannot say ze same. You look amazing yourself. Magical ability or no," Fleur said, making me smile.

"Thanks. It's... it's been a while, you know? At least..." The smile disappeared and it was replaced by something more solemn as I looked to the side.

 _"Dammit, pull yourself together! She would want this,"_ my mind insisted. I looked back at Fleur, who was looking at me with worry.

"I don't want to get into it. Let's just say I haven't had the best time when it comes to women," I told her, making her nod.

"I can understand zat. Eet is fine," Fleur said, before gently moving my shoulder. "Come on. We 'ave to get moving."

I then noticed that McGonagall was gesturing for the champions to follow her and I walked with Fleur to get over to her.

We made our way over to the judge's table, my grim thoughts slowly subsiding and being filled with more positive ones.

I eyed Ron as we passed him, and he was watching Hermione with narrowed eyes. I rolled my eyes. But even in the process of me doing so, I did notice him shift that narrowed eyed gaze over to us. Padma looked sulky, and I couldn't blame her.

 _"Harry, I'm afraid you did not do anyone any favors by setting Padma up with Ron,"_ I thought with a shake of my head. Then I frowned as I looked at the judge's table.

"Crouch isn't here," I whispered to her. Her eyes roamed to the judge's table and to Percy.

"Is 'e ill?" Fleur questioned.

"Odd time to be ill, considering his role as a judge," I said with a frown. "Eh. Maybe he had a work emergency or something and I'm reading much into this. I tend to do that."

"Tonight will be a good night," Fleur assured me warmly. I couldn't help but smile.

"Yeah. It will," I said as I eyed Percy. "I think I would prefer Crouch though. Percy's looking so smug, you would think he's the next in line for a shot at Triwizard Champion."

"You are not wrong," Fleur said as she looked at the look of absolute self-righteousness on his face. I then eyed Percy as he talked to Harry.

"He's been promoted," I said, reading his lips. "He's Crouch's personal assistant and he's here representing him. From the way he's looking and the way Harry is rolling his eyes, you could swear he's just been announced to replace Fudge as the next Minister of Magic." Fleur stifled a laugh as she looked at Percy.

"You read lips?" Fleur asked. There was a strange sort of urge that tingled in the back of my brain. One that had not been there for a while. It felt right, but... wrong at the same time.

"Yeah," I decided to answer instead before going back to read Percy's lips. "Apparently's he's been overworking himself. That's why's he's not here." But I could not resist a very audible snicker at Harry's next sentence. It certainly caused Percy to roll his shoulders like a pompous prince that had just been offended before walking away.

"What did 'e say?" Fleur asked.

"Harry told him, 'Well, considering all of the trust he's residing in you, has he bothered to remember your name yet?'" I repeated for her. She didn't snicker, but she I could tell she wanted to. Instead she settled for a very wide smile.

"Is zat true?" Fleur asked.

"I was there when he called Percy 'Weatherby,'" I said with a chuckle, making her unable to resist laughing. I then turned my attention to the menus. "Anyway, you reckon we ought to eat?"

"There's no food," Fleur pointed out, causing me to point over to Dumbledore. He said "Pork Chops!" to his plate. And pork chops appeared.

"Sweet," Fleur said, making me smile at her use of the word. It was a little out of place for her, but not unwelcome.

Fleur decided on Bouillabaisse, and I decided to go with Mussels. I had my sleeves rolled up while I ate.

"I must admit. I am not quite as impressed of these decorations compared to ze ones at Beauxbatons," Fleur said, making me raise an eyebrow. I swallowed my food before speaking.

"Oh? Paint me a picture then," I said with a smile. Fleur seemed happy to oblige.

"At ze Palace of Beauxbatons, we 'ave ice sculptures all around ze dining chamber at Chreestmas. Zey do not melt, of course... zey are like 'uge statues of diamond, glittering around ze place. And ze food is seemply superb. And we 'ave choirs of wood nymphs, 'oo serenade us as we eat."

I took in each of her words, putting it all together in an entrance hall rather like this. I really wouldn't expect any armor like here, and I had to admit, it was a rather pleasant image. Almost like something out of a high class establishment, only not quite as snooty, but more... homey.

"That's quite the image," I said with a smile. But I also gestured around the Hall. "But hey. We're not doing all that bad here. Plus, this place is like a second home."

"Home is where your 'eart is. If your 'eart is 'ere, than eet is 'ere," Fleur said, making me smile warmly.

"Amazingly insightful. Horribly cliche, but insightful," I said with a playful grin. She mock pushed my shoulder with a grin.

"Silly man," she said. My grin got ever wider. There was something... magical about the way her face lit up when she smiled like that, no pun intended.

"So tell me dear Ms. Delacour... family?" I asked.

"Maman and Papa, as you've seen in the papers. But I also have a seester. Gabrielle. You've already mentioned your family," Fleur asked, her face falling a little. I smiled in reassurance.

"I have two excellent people I can call Maman and Papa. I love them dearly," I said with a genuine smile.

"Family ties are very important. 'Old on to any zat you 'ave," Fleur told me.

"I do. With all of the might I have," I said, tightening my fists. "Anyway, my whole life is a bit of a sob story, but I try not to brood on it. I prefer to focus on the more..." I held Fleur's gaze. "...beautiful aspects of life."

I saw her cheeks take on a light pink tinge as she broke eye contact. Then she looked up on the stage. I couldn't help but smirk. I actually managed to flatter her.

"I believe it is time for the dance," she said. I looked over and saw that Dumbledore was gesturing for the champions to get onto the dance floor. I held Fleur's hand as we walked onto the dance floor. One hand rested on her waist, the other in her hand that wasn't occupied by the back of my neck.

Like it was part of my nature, my feet moved in sync with the slow tune. But unlike most situations where I was forced to dance like this, I wasn't leading. She wasn't leading me either. It was like a tango, only with a more classical feel to it. It felt more fun.

"Well, well, well. You can dance," Fleur said, a playful smirk playing on her lips.

"If I say that I can dance, I can dance. My word is fact," I said with a grin. I was acutely aware that after I said this, she pulled me significantly closer rather quickly. My breath caught for about a second.

"Really?" she said, her smile infectious.

"Really," I confirmed.

"We shall see, won't we?" Fleur said. Her timing seemed to be perfect right as the slow song ended. Then immediately after, they began a faster, more upbeat song. "Zat is, if you aren't tired?"

"Bring it on," I said with a smirk. Fleur only grinned. We put our hands down before the music really hit my ears, my feet and arms moving like they were seemingly on autopilot. But Fleur wasn't far behind either.

 _Boogie down like a hairy troll_

 _Learning to rock and roll_

 _Spin around like a crazy elf_

 _Dancing by himself_

I felt the grin on my face about to split my face as I moved my hands and feet swiftly and stylishly. Fleur was also taking the song change in stride as she had no problem using not just her hands and feet, but her hips to dance to the music. I don't care who you are. A veela, half or otherwise moving their hips to a beat was rather entrancing.

 _Aw, can you dance like a hippogriff?_

 _Na, na, na! Na, na, na! Na, na, na!_

Suddenly we closed the distance again, and I, with a stylish air, twirled Fleur around and held her hand so we would switch spots before immediately beginning to dance again. I was not one for dancing, but this made it look like I was. This was fun. No strings attached to the situation. Just to people having fun.

When the song ended, Fleur was panting.

"Tired?" I questioned with a smirk.

"'Ardly. Just... releasing some 'ot air," she said with a haughty tone.

"You can dance. Rather sensually, at that," I complimented with a nod.

"You're fairly excellent at eet yourself. You seem to 'ave a talent to just about everything you do," Fleur said, making me grin.

"Call it my natural born gift," I said as I grabbed her hand. I just now became aware of how often I was doing that. I then lead her over to where Harry and Parvati had taken seats. Harry, seemed to be trying to show Parvati a good time, but I knew his heart just wasn't fully in it. But I turned to Fleur.

"Back in one moment," I said, walking over to the refreshment table. Considering a song just ended, the line was rather extensive. I let out a puff of breath as I put my hands in my pockets. Still didn't stop me from grinning though. I felt a very consistent elation in my body; like this joy that just wouldn't go away.

"Someone dances rather well," a familiar voice said behind me. I turned to see that it was Aurore. She was dressed in rather extravagant robes over her own. She looked stunning in her own right with dress robes of a bright blue; almost like it was a daytime sky. Her midnight hair was like Fleur's, only it fell down to nearly half of her back.

"I thought you were staying in," I said with a smirk.

"Yeah, well... changed my mind about halfway through. You know you're the number one person I would go with?" Aurore said.

"Really?" I said with a raised eyebrow before smirking. "So what? I'm not just a tutor anymore?"

"No, you're still a tutor. Just sexier than your average tutor. Not to mention more charming. And you don't use pickup lines that would involve learning," Aurore said with a grin.

"Then why did you insist I ask Fleur?" I questioned.

"Like I said. These type of events are definitely not my thing. Besides, I'd love for her to find someone she learn to care for that's a male. You know hard it is for me to get her to lighten up?" Aurore questioned.

"With you sense of humor, I'm surprised she lightens up at all," I said with a grin as she swatted my shoulder. "In all seriousness though, I know that this isn't the most flattering thing in the world to say, but you were second on my list if Fleur was already taken."

"You're right. That's actually quite unflattering," Aurore said, making me smile.

"Does it help if I say that I had a tough time picking which one of you to ask before you asked me to ask Fleur?" I questioned, making her raise an eyebrow.

"Didn't you say you found out about the ball in like, less than five minutes after I asked you?" Aurore questioned.

"It was a tough five minutes," I said dryly before noticing I was the next one for the punch bowl. Her laughter hit my ears as I began to ladle punch some in cups.

"At least you considered me," Aurore said.

"You're a damn good time. No doubts about that. My recommendation: Find a partner. Have some fun. They'll be lucky to have you," I said, gesturing around the room with the two full cups that were in my hands.

"Duly noted. But you owe me a dance. It better not be a slow one either. I don't do slow," Aurore said, making me smirk.

"Of course. Let me know if hands go where they don't belong. I'm not afraid to break a few fingers tonight," I said, making Aurore laugh.

"Also duly noted," she said. I grinned as I began to walk back to where Fleur was. What worried me was that I didn't spot her there. What I did spot was Ron and Hermione inches from each other. And it wasn't because they were about to lean in for a romantic kiss.

"Oh, excellent. Just when I thought tonight was going to have no problems..." I said to myself as I walked closer to them. After a few seconds, I could distinguish their words through the music.

"...to Harry or Robert - get inside information on them - or get near enough to jinx them-" I immediately interjected.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa," I said, setting the cups down. "I heard information and jinxing happening in the same sentence. What's the deal?"

"Ron has this idea that's about as thick as his skull that Krum is using me to get to Harry. Or you, for that matter," Hermione said, her voice on the brink of a quiver. Not a sad quiver, but an angry one.

"He hasn't asked about us or anything like that, has he?" I asked, my tone somewhat hesitant.

"No! He hasn't even mentioned you two. Not once!" Hermione exclaimed, making me raise my hands in surrender.

"Alright, alright. I was just asking," I said before looking at Ron. But he already had other tactics in mind.

"Then he's hoping you'll help him find out what his egg means!" Ron exclaimed. "I suppose you've been putting your heads together during those cozy little library sessions -"

"I'd never help him work out that egg!" Hermione said, a look of outrage on her face. "Never. How could you say something like that - I want Harry to win the tournament. Harry knows that, don't you, Harry?"

"Yes, I do," Harry said almost immediately. Not fast enough to inherit suspicion, but the perfect speed to suggest faith and trust. And under normal circumstances I would've said some sarcastic comment about how I could feel the love, but I didn't think now was the time.

"You've got a funny way of showing it," Ron sneered. I rolled my neck in exasperation. Holy Christ. I can see why Fleur left.

"This whole tournament's supposed to be about getting to know foreign wizards and making friends with them!" Hermione said hotly.

"No it isn't!" Ron shouted. "It's about winning!"

Now people were starting to stare at them. I couldn't help but feel slightly embarrassed just watching this go down. Ron was being, well, unbelievable. Whether he was jealous of Krum getting Hermione or he really was just acting paranoid about Krum using Hermione, this definitely was not the way to go about either situation.

"Holy mother of God... where'd Fleur go?" I asked Harry.

"Saw her head towards the entrance hall. I'll handle these two. Try to enjoy the rest of your night," Harry told me.

I nodded gratefully before grabbing the drinks off the table and going to check the entrance hall. Harry's guess was spot on as she was there, pacing back and forth.

"Hey," I said, getting her attention. I then handed her one of the drinks. "I see you've seen our dynamic duo in action."

"Zat is certainly one way to put eet," Fleur said, taking a several sips out of the cup. "I know jealousy when I see eet."

"Yeah, well... apparently he didn't seem too thrilled about Hermione actually having a date. Her date being Krum only gave him ammunition to work with. Harry isn't either, but he's not acting like Ron is. He had plans on asking her to this ball long before Ron did," I told her.

"Hmmph. Zat boy does not eempress me at all. 'E seems nothing like you or 'Arry," Fleur said. "'Ow did you even become friends?"

"I sort of befriended Ron through association with Harry. At the time, he was actually a pretty good friend. As to how Harry befriended Ron, hell if I know. I wasn't exactly curious as to the details," I said, drinking from the cup. Only I ended up draining it in one gulp. "Curse my drinking capacity."

"'Ow about a butterbeer?" Fleur asked before a smirk crossed her face as she drained the rest of her punch. "I don't even zink you could drain zat in one gulp."

"Two is pushing it," I said, a small smile beginning to work its way to my face. "Come on. Back in we go."

The both of us walked back in, and walked over the the table for refreshments. I handed her a butterbeer while grabbing one of my own. The awkwardness of seeing Hermione and Ron go at it kind of set in given the silence we drank out butterbeers in. I had nothing that I truly wanted to say. At least anything that got my throat to unstick.

"Does your Maman and Papa know what you do 'ere?" Fleur suddenly asked, the bottle an inch from her lips.

"Not concerning Hogwarts, but as for taking care of Harry, yes. The world knows about that. I hadn't visited them in a long time until the start of this summer. I..." I sighed. "There's so much that you don't know about me. Things that I want to tell you, but I just feel that I can't. Not yet, anyway."

"Why not?" Fleur asked.

"They aren't just secrets. They're nightmares. These things used to have me wake up screaming years ago. They shaped me into what I am today. I've seen more than I care to admit, and I can never forget. I have to live with it," I said, holding onto the butterbeer bottle like it was a lifeline. The only person I had even bothered to explain this much detail to was Harry, Maman and Papa, the last two being the only ones who knew the whole story.

"Come here," Fleur said, gently moving me to follow her. She then sat down on a seat in the courtyard, then, with a tender touch, moved my head over to lean on her shoulder. It felt... relaxing.

"Nightmares fade eventually. Memories, 'owever, are everlasting. Especially ze ones we wish to forget ze most," Fleur said, running a hand over my head. "Ze only option is to 'eal."

"Healing I've done already. But these are wounds that can be reopened over and over and over again," I said before sitting up. "Aurore came to the ball. I promised her a dance, so let me go ahead and do that before the ball ends."

"Of course," Fleur said. I nodded and tried to plaster a smile back on my face. It took some doing, but I did it. More than anything, I hated bring up my past. Especially what happened in France four years ago. My greatest failure... The very thing I heard when I got near a Dementor... The day that I failed someone that I loved.

I almost wanted to laugh from some twisted saying that adults love to say. That people my age didn't know what love was. We weren't old enough to understand it. I knew what the fuck it was because I was always older than what my age suggested. I never truly had a chance to act like a kid after my parents died.

It's hard to live with that pain when you had an eidetic memory. Your brain never having the capacity to make you move on, to stop reliving it. A sharp, piercing scream... Bullets being fired... Blood pooling onto the ground, staining your knees... Holding a lifeless corpse in your arms that you couldn't bring back even with your all powerful healing hypos... laughing... mocking... feeling a part of your own soul rip like it was wet tissue paper...

"There you are," Aurore said, making me look up. I didn't know what the look on my face looked like, but judging from Aurore's expression, it was far from happy. "Hey, you alright?"

"Fine. You still want that dance?" I asked.

"Um... yeah. But not while you look like this. What happened? Night didn't go like you expected it to?" Aurore asked.

"You could say that. It's just... I'm getting rather weary," I lied. "Dealing with Hermione and Ron sometimes."

"What's the deal with them?" Aurore asked.

"Ron's a jealous bastard," I said, managing to recover.

"What else is new? Given what you told me about him when the champions were first selected," Aurore said as we made it onto the dance floor.

"I'll explain the rest tomorrow. For now..." I said before bending my knees slightly in a bow. "Shall we? I'm afraid they're playing nothing but slow songs at the moment."

"You owe me a fast one. This is just a down payment," Aurore said with a grin.

"Deal," I said, immediately taking hold of her waist and grabbing her free hand. Like Fleur, she seemed to know how to dance herself without needing me to lead.

"I've been to funerals that have had more exciting dances than this," Aurore said dryly, making me chuckle.

"I'd love to see that. Especially considering dancing isn't even a tradition at funerals," I said.

"My point exactly," Aurore said making me laugh as I shifted my feet in a smooth turn.

"And this is why you were the close contender. Kinda wish I could've escorted you both. Would've be fun," I said.

"I would've been fine with that. Just as long as you didn't think you were getting any menage a trois action," Aurore said with a raised eyebrow, making me laugh loud enough to the point where I sounded like I was talking into a microphone. That joke was ten times funnier when it came from someone who was actually French.

"While that would've been a night to remember, it would not have been on my mind. Hell, it's not even on my find with Fleur right now," I told her.

"I would certainly hope not. You're dancing with me, naughty boy. For all I know, you may transfer your thoughts of her onto me as a surrogate," Aurore said, making me slap her waist somewhat firmly. But I was still grinning.

"Oh, you know what I mean!" I told her.

"Yeah, I do. I'd say you're the first, like, ever in that case," Aurore said.

"I know. Eccentric, remember?" I said with a grin.

"With the maturity of an old war veteran, but all of the hormones of an eight year old," Aurore said.

"Believe me, if I cared about sex, given my stance in the Muggle world, it wouldn't exactly be hard to get. There's only so much peace will fix," I told her.

"It's a good thing you didn't. She'd take the opportunity to make you have to marry her and show her around like a showgirl," Aurore said.

"That sounds about right. But I'm afraid no one can force me to marry anyone. If they try, given my resources, I can make them regret it," I told her.

"Ooh, dangerous," Aurore said with a teasing tone. I then twirled her around before pulling her closer than before with a mischievous grin.

"Very much so," I said with a deeper tone. I laughed at the way her eyes widened before I put a little space between us. "I play too."

"Apparently," Aurore said as the song ended. I then let her go before putting a fist over my heart and bowing.

"That was fun. Naturally, it takes the wrong turn considering who I'm dancing with, but it's all good," I said with a grin.

"Likewise. Now, I think you ought to get back to Fleur. You owe her you attention for the rest of the night," Aurore said.

"Oh, I know it. I fully intend to do so," I said.

"Anyway, I think I'll head back to the carriage. See you tomorrow," Aurore said, making me nod.

I walked back out to the entrance hall, where I saw Fleur still waiting outside. I shook my head.

"Sorry for making you wait," I said.

"Zat is what warming charms are for," Fleur said with a grin.

"You know what I mean," I said, taking hold of her arm again.

"At least you are a man of your word," Fleur said as we began to walk. "You gave ze dance you promised 'er."

"Yeah, and since they weren't playing any fast songs, this one doesn't count. Or rather, it's a down payment," I said, making Fleur shake her head.

"Aurore will go to 'er grave zat way," she said.

"I have no doubt. Whoever she dates better have a good tolerance for blushing, but they're going to be doing a lot of it," I said, making Fleur laugh airily.

"Zat sounds very accurate. Anyway, eenough of zat. Do you wish to talk more?" she asked.

"Pick a subject," I told her.

"...plans after school," Fleur said after a period of thinking.

"The Muggle Studies position at Hogwarts or some position in the Ministry. Wouldn't hurt to get someone in either spot that actually knows what they're doing," I said, making Fleur laugh.

"Aim for Meenister. I 'ave to say zat I'm not very impressed by your current one," she said.

"I'm not either. I've met him. It took me everything within not to beat the crap out of him after that Dementor fiasco last year. Minister of Magic, or no," I said, my tone turning darker.

"What 'appened?" Fleur asked.

"What didn't happen is easier to answer. Dementors nearly caused Harry to plummet to his death while he was on a broom. They nearly gave me and him a Dementor's Kiss. I don't think you need much more motivation for dislike for someone when they support the idea of having creatures like that around a school," I said, raw anger entering my tone again. I then blew out a puff of breath in an attempt to calm myself.

"I am now beyond not impressed. I am livid. What finally addressed zeir removal?" Fleur asked.

"The attempt for the Dementor's Kiss. That was the last straw. As if Harry falling hundreds of feet off his broom because of those things wasn't reason enough. I was livid at the time, but there was literally nothing I could do to reverse the decision. I wonder if just how many parents knew Dementors were patrolling the castle grounds, making students imagine their worst fears..." A shadow crossed my face as I remembered exactly what the Dementors made me relive...

"Robert," Fleur said softly, nudging me slightly. "Do not focus on zat."

"I'm sorry. I just hate that it had to happen in the first place. It's the worst feeling in the world, that... seeing your child nearly being set up for a fate worse than death..." I said, blinking back the memories. "I'm not really doing a very good job of trying not to focus on that."

"Zen focus on something else," a different French accent said. I turned, and it was that Sebastian guy who lead us to the wand weighing thing.

"Oh, hey," I said in a rather unaffected tone. "Well, please enlighten us as to what we could be focusing on."

"I'm not talking about you," he said with distaste. He then looked to Fleur.

"Oh, boy. Should've expected this," I said in an aside.

"Out of everyone to pick for a date, you pick 'im? Ze person 'oo dishonestly got zemselves into zis tournament?" Sebastian questioned. Then I understood better. This wasn't about him wanting to go with Fleur. This was about the image she was showing.

"Yes. Because not only did 'e not willingly submit 'imself into zis tournament, but 'e is certainly showing maturity and politeness zat isn't a product of me being part Veela. You care for imagery far too much," Fleur said.

"You do not care about eet enough," he retorted.

"Caring too much about what people think about you will not do you any favors. Trust me. You'll learn that the hard way," I told him as we made to walk past him.

Surprisingly, a lot of people were still here. But the Weird Sisters were being given a last round of applause, people exclaiming that they wished the ball could've gone on longer.

"I'll see you then," I said after releasing her from a hug. Then Fleur gave me a kiss on the cheek with a warm smile.

"Au revoir Monsieur Morgan. Passez une nuit glorieuse," she said before walking off towards the outside where the carriage. I smiled as I began to head towards the marble staircase.

"Enjoy your night?" I was asking Harry, not Ron. I could answer that immediately.

"Parvati's pretty, but damn can she be a bit much," Harry said, making me grin.

"How?" I asked.

"Trying to drag me to the dance floor, attempts at trying to steer me around like a damn lap dog... None of which I was going to stand for. But other than that, she was somewhat pleasant. She can dance well, at the very least. Conversations weren't half bad either. Wasn't a bad night," Harry said in a satisfied tone.

"I'm glad you enjoyed yourself," Ron said somewhat moodily. I ignored him and smiled at Harry. I'm glad he was still able to enjoy himself, regardless of whether or not Parvati was actually number five on his list to take to the ball.

"I'm glad for that," I said as we made our way up the steps.

"What about you? Did the Veela rock your world?" Harry asked with a smirk. I smiled.

"A little," I said.

"I'll say. I don't think I've seen you that happy before. You looked like you were having the time of your life when you were on that dance floor with her," Harry said, making me smile as the very feeling came back to me.

"Yes... Yes, I suppose I did," I said, my smile only growing wider. Then I noticed we were at the portrait of the Fat Lady. "Fairy Lights!"

The Fat Lady and Violet were both sleeping, so when my yell woke them up, they were beyond irritated. The main section of the common room was packed. Whether it was girls trying to take their shoes off, guys untying ties, etc.

"Don't know how often I'll dress like this again," I said as I began to remove my cufflinks.

"Ah, here he is!" Fred and George exclaimed, seemingly Apparating out of nowhere. "The man who pulled a Veela!" I couldn't help but grin and shake my head as numerous people turned their stares to me.

"Yes, I went to the ball with a Veela. I think that's kind of obvious," I told him.

"How'd you do it? I mean, I know Ron-" Dean went silent upon Ron transferring his glare to him.

"It was easy. A couple of magic little words," I said, making the cufflinks disappear. "'Will you go to the ball with me?' You see, it's relatively simple."

"You make it sound like it was that easy. She's not exactly a ray of sunshine," Lavender suddenly said.

"That's because you don't know her," I said, untying my tie before rolling my neck to crack it.

"And you do?" Lavender questioned. I got a mischievous look on my face before walking up the stone steps.

"Oooh! What'd you two do?" Parvati questioned, her voice excited. Oh, boy. I think may have just fed the sharks some blood.

"That's for us to remember, and for you all never to find out," I said with a smirk. There was a bit of a noticeable difference in noise when I went up the steps. I had likely incited some rumors around the House. Didn't really care at the moment.

I changed out of my suit and into some night clothes. I whistled to myself before I noticed a note on my bed. This gave me pause before I grabbed it. It looked promising; it wasn't pink, and it had no hearts on it. I tore the very top of the letter before taking the letter out and skimming it with my eyes.

 _Robert,_

 _I couldn't say this at the ball cause I didn't want anyone to listen. There are too many nosy people in this castle to do so._

I grinned. This had to be from Aurore. I could just tell from the style.

 _I want to know if you're serious about Fleur. Because the fact of the matter is, you're a guy she genuinely likes. **Not as far as dating yet,** (This was put with dark red ink rather than black) but just in general. Guys, or hell, even other females like that don't come often. No, she doesn't swing that way, so get your head out of the gutter, you naughty boy._

 _Guys she feels she could date come along even less. I don't care if you wait until the end of the year to tell me. I just want to know. Whatever old flames, crushes, or whatever may be happening, get them sorted out if you are. I like you, and you may be a champion, but if you break my friend's hard to pierce heart, not only have you earned the title of 'Super Sadist,' but I will also curse your body into little sticky pieces, blend them, and feed em to werewolves for a protein shake. Think about it._

 _Side note: If I happen to be in the 'crush' category, get over to the carriage so I can suck your lips dry for a few minutes. Never hurts to be a little proactive before you settle down._

 _Aurore_

I had to hold back a laugh at the letter. That was definitely Aurore's handiwork. The phrasing of everything was so her.

But then the smile disappeared once the true point of the letter sank in. I couldn't really give her an answer at this point. I'm not even sure to whether or not I could even call Tonks an 'old flame.' I had no contact with her, now nearing three years. I had some good times with her, and she was the first person I kissed for what felt like decades ago.

But even Tonks wasn't the main problem. No, the main problem was a red-headed ghost trailing in my shadow wherever I went. That was the problem.

I kept myself sealed off for a reason. That was why I wanted avoid making contact with people when I first came here. But spending time with Harry broke that barrier I tried to keep up. I started making friends; people that you care about and would give anything to protect, you just made a vigilante's one true weakness: attachment.

A true vigilante has everything to give, but nothing to lose. They can do whatever it takes to get the job done. Not me. I've got attachments spread out like corpses on a battlefield. Harry. Hermione. The Weasleys. Sirius. Lupin. Maman. Papa. Fleur. Aurore. Dumbledore. Snape. Even Tonks still trailed in my mind, no matter how much I wished to get her out. All of them targets on a dart board, just waiting to be shot at...

I shook my head. I was being stupid. Anyone who cared about getting to me certainly couldn't use most of the people on that list considering they lived in the magical world. And Maman and Papa were surrounded by soldiers; the best of the best. Trained by me into weapons of pure destruction. They were fine.

No, the main problem was that I allowed an experience with one girl get in the way of what could be the happiness I wanted for myself. I wish I could just get over it like I did my parents; mourn them and finally be able to move on. But no. She was a ghost. I couldn't mourn her. She was dead, but she was still following me.

"You ok?" Harry asked. I looked up and he was standing in the doorway with a concerned look on his face.

"Fine. Just going back to the ghosts of my past," I said, putting the letter under my pillow.

"Don't let that ruin what this night could mean for you," Harry said.

"That's the very problem. It concerns what happened tonight very much," I told him.

"Talking about Gwen?" Harry asked, making me nod. "I don't understand what you're feeling."

"You don't want to. Trust me," I said.

"I know I don't. But you have to not let it ruin you," Harry told me.

"I'm doing my best, but... it's like a ghost that just won't leave me alone. I just..." I trailed off, staring out of the window. "Look, I'd rather sleep right now."

"Yeah, ok," Harry said, starting to change out of his dress robes. I got under the cover and closed my eyes. I wish Aurore didn't take the time to write that letter, but I also felt that was also necessary.


	16. Chapter 16 - False Facts

A/N: Dragged my feet on uploading this, forgive me. I had this idea when I started to make this story. It'll make more sense come later installments.

* * *

"How's the Mermish studying coming along?" I asked Harry.

"Fairly well. I can say most of spells in the language," he said without taking his eyes off the book. Since Gillyweed immediately made the person who ingested it speak Mermish, Harry needed to know the words in the language so he could properly use his wand under the water. Lord knows what would happen if he tried to say the spell otherwise.

"That's good," I told him.

"Also, Aurore also told me to give you this. It's from Fleur," Harry said, handing me a note.

 _Preparing for the second task today. Feel free to do whatever it is you normally do before I came around._

 _Love, Fleur_

 _P.S: Hope you had as good a time at the Ball as I did._

I couldn't help but smile as I read the note. There was this... lightness that I felt. This joy that I couldn't describe.

"Good news?" Harry asked, smirking at the look on my face.

"Somewhat. I have a free day," I said as I pocketed the note. "Fleur's working on the second task today. She told me she figured it out already, so I'm guessing she's developing a strategy for what to do."

"Speaking of strategy, how's that suit of yours coming along?" Harry asked.

"Fine. It's already ready," I told him.

"That's..." Harry cut himself off from the sound of my phone buzzing. "That doesn't look good."

"Great." I groaned as I looked at the caller id. But it wasn't a government number. It was from the bank. I haven't gotten a call from the bank in years. "Hold on. I need to take this."

"Go ahead," Harry said, going back to his book. I walked out before answering the phone as soon as I made it out of the common room.

"Hello?" I asked.

 _"Mr. Morgan?"_ the man on the other end asked.

"This is him," I said evenly.

 _"Joseph Line here. Now, I'm calling about this recent withdrawl that you made on account... 01-A_ ," the banker said, making my eyes widen.

"Did you say 01-A?" I questioned.

 _"Yes sir. A sizeable amount of two million was taken out. The account's activity has been nullfied ever since your company began to take off, and I'm calling for proper protocol_ ," Joseph told me.

"No, I did not make a withdrawal from that account. I haven't touched that bank account in years," I said, trying to hide the anger in my tone. Account 01-A was the account that held the money my parents left me. And I left it in the condition they gave it to me in. It was one of the last things I had left of them, and now some son a bitch was helping themselves to the money? Uh uh. Somebody was getting hurt.

"S _hould I seal off all access to that account?"_ Joseph told me.

"Yes. How was the transaction done?" I asked.

 _"Someone came up to the bank and asked for it. I'm not sure if it was a carbon copy of you, but they were apparently able to get the money out without a fuss,"_ Joseph told me.

"Do you happen to have a picture? They need to be dealt with," I told him.

 _"Unfortunately, I_ _don't. And I_ _don't have access to the security cameras to find out. But the account will be sealed off,"_ Joseph told me.

"I understand. Thank you for your help," I said as I stood to my feet. "I'll be able to take it from here."

 _"Very well, sir. Goodbye,"_ Joseph said.

"Goodbye," I said as I hung up. Then I growled as I punched a hole in the wall next to the Fat Lady, who jumped. "Goodbye indeed."

"Son of a bitch..." I growled as I walked down the staircase. There was no way he would be able to hide from me. "All money leaves a paper trail, you jackass. Especially when you can trace it..."

My phone lit up with a ping. A grim smile of satisfaction came across my face as I immediately got a location. A secluded location somewhere in the outside of England. The money was apparently inly used for a cab ride. The people who are involved in this might not be corpses, but they will hurt everywhere once I'm done with them. Time to fly out of here.

My jet flew down near the forest and I hopped in before it immediately took off. I would change on the way there, which wouldn't be long. It wouldn't raise an uproar from how silent it was, and it was fast enough to go all around the world in less than a day. Perfect for someone with my particular... skill set.

 _"There's more money in this bank than we know what to do with. One day, we'll leave everything in here to you."_ I tightened my fists and I only found myself getting angrier. Then I had to calm down. Regardless whether or not they were targeting me specifically, I had to go in with a calm head. If I didn't, I might do something that would be over the top. Couldn't do that. People liked me because they knew that I killed the people who deserved it. Not your average thief.

 _"Well, given how he robbed me, I wouldn't call him simple,"_ I thought as I flew over the house in question. The jet was cloaked while scanning the images below. There were two people inside. One was sitting down in front of a TV. The other seemed to be moving around in a room. Big mistake pretending like stealing from me wouldn't lead to consequences. So I jumped while putting on my mask and glasses as if I wasn't falling from a height that would kill anyone who didn't have shoes designed to absorb any and all impacts.

I fell right through the roof, and right on top of the TV. The first thing that registered in my mind was a female scream. A rapid scramble of feet, then I held a gun up without even looking in her direction. The click couldn't have been mistaken for anything else.

"Stop," I said in a low growl. "You have any idea who you just stole from?"

"Stole from? I don't know what you're talking about," the woman said.

 _"We are rich, but I will show you the value of a dollar."_ My eyes widened. That voice... that voice... I looked up as the dust had cleared. I was not expecting to look at someone who looked like my mother. I growled before grabbing her by the neck, causing her to let out a choking noise.

"Stop!" a man's voice exclaimed, coming at me at a speed that might as well have been in slow motion. I grabbed him by the neck, and at that point, I was starting to wonder if my eyes had started playing tricks on me.

"What kind of joke is this?" I growled as I squeezed my 'mother's' throat tighter.

"I... urk..." she said as she grabbed my throat.

"Listen, uh... Vigilante... we have no idea what you're talking about. We're not looking for trouble," the man said.

"You both look like Martha and Richard Morgan, parents of Robert Morgan, who have been dead for years. I have also received word from him that the account his parents left to him was accessed without his permission. Now, since it's been a few slow years for crime, I don't mind taking some frustration out on people that would so blatantly disrespect the dead like this," I explained, my voice in a growl.

"What you are not understanding is that we are them," the man said, making me laugh.

"I can confirm that," I said I pushed the woman into the wall. She fell down before I put the scanner that was built into my phone in front of her face as I held the man still. My eyes widened slightly at the confirmation that happened. According to the scanner, which analyzed blood, DNA, and fingerprints, this was my mother. Through and through. Down to the atom.

"This... this has to be some kind of joke," I said as I turned the scanner to the man. DNA, blood, and fingerprints. Match to everything. The discovery of magic wasn't as shocking as this.

"You both should be dead," I said, releasing the man... _my father_ from my grip.

"We faked our deaths. It was better to get away from... everything," he said.

"Well, what about your son?" I asked, unsure yet whether or not I should reveal myself as a crime vigilante. Plus I was still kind of in shock about the whole situation.

"Well... that's part of the reason we got out of there. It was just better to get away from everything. Including him," my father said. The words struck a chord with me. And I have to say that I was not happy.

"Excuse me?" I questioned, my voice suddenly icy.

"It was better to just not have the responsibility of kids anymore. Our goal was just to disappear while he took the family name where he wanted to take it. I'm sure he's doing well," my mother said.

"Why don't you ask him now," I said, deciding to damn the idea of hiding and removing my mask, glasses, and hood all in one gesture. Emotions made me reckless, but as of right now, I don't give a damn. Eyes widened, and I raised my hands. "Surprise. Your son is here. The son you apparently _abandoned."_

"I would hardly classify leaving you with millions as abandonment," my dad told me, making the corner of my mouth twitch.

"I would've gave it all up to have you both back," I said. This is not what I remembered my parents being like. And I knew for a fact my memory was always spot on. They told me they loved me, taught me things. This... they seemed cold. Detached. Didn't care about me at all.

"Cannot change the past. But I would say as a person who runs the richest business in history as well as fighting crime as a vigilante, you're doing rather well," my dad said.

"Well? Well?! You classify what has happened to me as _well?!"_ I growled.

"It's not like us leaving you was the most traumatic thing in the world. Most people get over it..."

"I'm not talking about you faking your deaths!" I yelled, suddenly nose to nose with him. I couldn't control my emotions right now even if I tried to employ Occlumency. This just changed something I thought was absolute fact. "I'm talking about what became of me after you did that! Do you have any idea what kind of path I was led down? Do you know what I've seen?! I've seen things no one should see in their life, much less a fourteen year old boy!"

"What on earth possessed you to become a vigilante, then?" my mom asked.

"Because I wanted to do something important. Something worthwhile. Biggest mistake of my life. I am absolutely fucked in the head. My psyche is damn near fractured. I am a monster. People fear me. I've done things. I've seen everything. What's it's like in the blackest underbelly of this horrible world," I explained before pointing at them. "And you have the nerve to stand there and pretend like anyone can be well after experiences like that."

"They're all a product of your choices," my mom told me.

"That you were the catalyst for! You did this to me!" I yelled, my hands raised in the air as I advanced towards her.

"Look, I know that..."

"No. Shut up. _Shut up,"_ I growled, tightening my fists. "Just what have you heard about the Vigilante?"

"Just that he, or I should say you, were a big help in getting the U.S., France, as well as England to regulate crime," my dad told me.

"Well, guess what I've done in between all of that. I witnessed people die, be raped, steal, tortured, and everything you could possibly think of. Have you ever had to calm a woman who was recently raped because she was suicidal? No. Have you seen a man begging you to put him out of his misery because his body hurt far more than he ever imagined? _No._ Have you witnessed people being chopped one limb at a time and having to bag the remains? _NO. I HAVE."_

"But that doesn't even touch the surface. Oh, no. I dared to fall in love with a woman. Gwen. One of the most people beautiful women I have ever had the fortune of meeting. My angel. My savior. Dead. Killed right in front of me because I wasn't good enough. That's what I get for daring to love while living the life that I did. Pain. That was what did it. After all that trauma, my mind came to a conclusion. You can't be a human when dealing with crime. You had to be a monster. So guess what? I've killed. I've maimed. And I've tortured. And I've _laughed_ about it at times. _Enjoyed_ their can't sit up here and talk to me and say that I'm well!" I explained in a rant, pinning my dad against the wall.

"Look at me," I growled as I saw him turn away. "Look in the eyes of your son. Tell me, what do you see? What do you see?"

"I see... nothing of what you used to be," my dad said.

"That's because there's none of my innocence left. It's all gone. Robbed of me. If you didn't want me, you could've taken me to an orphanage. I would've had a normal life, but no. NO. You take it one step further and fake your deaths," I growled.

"You weren't supposed to know we were alive. No one was," my mom said. I then pulled out a blade and held it under her throat, causing her breathing to catch.

"Oh? Then how about I make that come true? How about I just show you how fucked up your progeny has become? How about I show you how long your little boy can keep you under torture before you die?" I questioned before lowering the blade. "But I won't do that. No. Regardless of your actions, you didn't murder anyone. The only one who got hurt here was me. And I think I should be used to that by now, but I'm not."

"You know, this hurts. It hurts that a child that I now call my son loves me more than you do. It hurts that his two friends give more of a shit about me more than you. It _hurts_ that a woman I gave directions to in a forest or a girl that I'm competing with in a tournament with gives more of a shit about me than you do. There are so many people that I've met that have given more of a shit about me than you ever did. That all the times you've told me you loved me as a child meant _nothing."_

I was silent as I finished ranting. My shoulders were shaking with anger, but I had to fight down the sadness that was beginning to build up as well. Then I looked at the people who I now had the unfortunately pleasure of calling 'parents,' who stared at me with uncertainty and another emotion that I couldn't quite distinguish.

"So guess what? You can have your break from the world. Because I know for a fact I want nothing to do with you anymore," I said as I put my glasses, hood, and mask back in place. "Tell anyone about my identity as the Vigilante and not only will I disprove the accusations cold, but I will kill you for trying. You will jeopardize everything I own and everything that I give a shit about. Which as of now, you are no longer part of that list. Goodbye."

The goodbye was as cold as ice as I summoned a grapnel gun to my hand and got into my jet. Then I had an urge: Just an urge to destroy something; anything.

"What in the hell happened? What kind of existence is this? Where fifteen year olds become killers and have a mind more fucked up than most in the world? What kind of life am I living where their parents would rather fake their deaths rather send their kid to an orphanage? I got the short end of the stick when it came to life. What was even the point of praying to God for better days when shit like this happened?" I ranted aloud, my finger gripping my hair like I was a man going mad.

 _"Why couldn't Ihave just died in one of my Vigilante jobs? Maybe I would have the peace I've been looking for so long. It doesn't look like I'll get it alive,"_ I thought, putting my hands on my face and trailing them down. But one more thing had to be done. So I got on the phone.

 _"Hello?"_ a different voice asked.

"Yes. I realize that I made a request for bank 01-A to be closed down," I said.

 _"Yes, Mr. Morgan. The request has already been processed,"_ the man said.

"Well, I take it back. Take all of the money and keep it for yourselves," I said, making him go silent for a few seconds. "You heard me."

"S-sir, I don't think you realize..."

"Oh, I know exactly what I'm doing. Keep the money imbecile," I snapped. "But Joseph Line gets a full quarter of the amount. Am I understood?"

 _"Yes sir, but_ _I don't know why..."_

"I am doing this because I find it best to move on from the past. And I have no use for the money. Take the money, buy your beautiful loved one or your _loving parents_ a present to show them how much you love them," I said, doing everything that was in my power to stop my voice from breaking.

 _"Um... yes sir. That's very generous of you,"_ the man said.

"Don't mention it," I said in a hollow tone before hanging up. I wanted the vault cleaned. I don't care at all what happened to it. It could be given to cults for all I care. I didn't want anything associated with my parents near me anymore. Which means everything was ready for a change. Including where I lived. It's funny how I wanted nothing more than to have them as close to me as possible and now I wanted nothing more to forget that they were even my parents.

 _"'Well... that's part of the reason we got out of there. It was just better to get away from everything. Including him.' Yeah, and because of that, you've created one of the most broken people ever,"_ I thought as I stubbornly wiped my sleeve across my eyes. I then hardened my eyes before breathing in and out and employing Occlumency. I was not going to cry. No, I had already cried over them once before. I was not going to do it again. They were not worth my tears. They never gave a shit about me, but I'll be there to spit on their graves when they die. The last person who ever gave a shit about them who is alive is now gone.

"Are you alright?" Harry asked. I stormed into the common room like almost like I was raiding the place. It was hard not to notice.

"Fine," I said gruffly as I went upstairs and closed the door. I removed the Vigilante garb before changing into a T-shirt and shorts. Cracking my knuckles as I lied in my bed, I stared at the ceiling for what seemed like an eternity.

Eidetic memories suck at times. This was one of those times becuase I couldn't stop thinking about the conversation I had. And I can remember everything about it. Every. Little. Detail. What kind of cold bastards did I have for parents now? What happened to the parents I loved? What happened to the parents that told me they loved me and taught me things? I guess that was just false security.

 _"I just can't catch a fucking break in life. No matter what happens,"_ I growled in my head as I turned over on my side. I eased my eyes closed. I knew I was in for a restless sleep.


	17. Chapter 17 - An Oath

_"I've never drunk a day in my life yet. But I'm about to start,"_ I thought furiously as I rubbed my temples. _"First my parents now this rubbish with Skeeter."_

"You ok?" Harry asked, giving me a worried look.

"Skeeter is giving me a headache," I said simply.

"She's giving us _all_ a headache," Hermione said in an as-a-matter-of-fact tone.

"Do you think it was the greatest idea telling Skeeter off like that?" Ron asked in a worried tone.

"I doubt there's anything factual than she can print about Hermione that'll make her afraid to show her face. I made myself quite clear on what would happen if she printed anything false," I said, my tone cold.

"Good. That's one thing we really don't need right now. Especially since Hagrid's stuck in his hut and doesn't wanna come out," Harry said somewhat grimly.

"That's the point of us heading over here. To try and convince him," Ron said as we stopped outside his hut. Before anyone could knock, Hermione started to bang on the door.

"Hagrid, that's enough! We know you're in there! Nobody cares if your mum was a giantess, Hagrid! You can't let that foul Skeeter woman do this to you! Hagrid, get out here, you're just being -"

She was cut off by the door opening and I raised an eyebrow to it being Dumbledore behind the door, not Hagrid.

"Good afternoon," he said pleasantly.

"Afternoon Headmaster," I said politely. "Is Hagrid in here?"

"I assume that is the reason Ms. Granger attempted to burst down the door?" Even with Dumbledore's smile of ease, Hermione still turned pink from embarrassment. "Why don't you come in?"

"Thank you," Harry said politely before we all walked in.

Fang went for me as soon as we walked in, but my attention was mostly on Hagrid. It seems he was living the life of a drunkard. He looked very unkempt and the place wasn't necessary the cleanest place on earth. At least he was drinking tea instead of firewhiskey. I think the place would be in even worse shape if that was the case.

"Hey Hagrid," I said, idly picking up a fallen kitchen item and placing it back on the stove.

"'Lo," he said in a very hoarse voice.

"More tea, I think," Dumbledore said, closing the door before summoning a tea tray with a plate of cakes. He put the tray on the table, and I politely declined the food. I opted for leaning against the wall and watching everyone. "Did you by any chance hear what Miss Granger was shouting, Hagrid?"

"Hermione, Harry, Ron, and Mr. Morgan still seem to want to know you, judging by the way they were attempting to break down the door," he continued.

"To be fair Headmaster, if she really wanted to break down the door, I wouldn't put it past her to use Bombarda," I said with a slight smirk when she gave me a withering look. "But the point does still stand. The fact that you're half giant is irrelevant. We find you a respectable person, and personally in my opinion, that's all you should really care about."

"And on that note, I should bring up the letters from the countless parents that _do_ know you. They all told me in no uncertain terms that if I sacked you, they would have something to say about it," Dumbledore said.

"Not all of 'em," Hagrid said hoarsely. "Not all of 'em wan me ter stay."

"Really Hagrid, if you are holding out for universal popularity, I'm afraid you will be in this cabin for a very long time," Dumbledore said with a stern look. "Not a week has passed since I became headmaster of this school when I haven't had at least one owl complaining about the way I run it. But what should I do? Barricade myself in my study and refuse to talk to anybody?"

"And plenty of us happen to think you're more than capable," Harry said with a nod. "Hagrid, this situation is hardly any different from yours."

"Yeh - yeh're not half-giant!" Hagrid said croakily. On this note, I couldn't help but shake my head.

"And you're not Muggle. You don't understand how many letters that I've gotten saying that no Muggle is fit to raise a wizard. That he should be given to a respectable pureblood family to be raised? My mere presence here has gotten the so called purebloods' blood boiling in outrage. In the courts and just in general. Anyone who was remotely associated with the Death Eaters or supported any idea of a pureblood society does not like me. And my response was, and will always be, if you will excuse my language for a moment Headmaster... to tell them all to fuck off," I explained, trying to calm myself down.

"You are excused," Dumbledore said plainly.

"And let's also take the fact that not every good person is going to have an 'acceptable' family. After all, I was barely old enough to talk properly before my aunt and uncle made a cupboard my room and committing 'freakish' acts that was part of who I was would get meals withheld from me. That honestly doesn't spell relatives of the year," Harry said rather dryly. I would've laughed if the subject wasn't about shitty relatives. That was a bit of salt in the wound. Mine and his. But at least his didn't seem to be bothering him.

"Those lousy Muggles..." Hagrid growled before looking at me, making me raise a calm hand.

"They're horrible people. And they are Muggles, so I have no reason to take offense to that statement," I said calmly. "The point is Hagrid, that not all of your relatives are going to be sunshine and rainbows. Some of them might have suffer from drug addiction or might be a drunk. Some of them might fake their deaths and leave you mourning their deaths at the age of thirteen, not knowing the kind of road it leads you down as a result." At that point, I paused. I was rambling now. And given how my nails were digging into my palms, I was far from calm. And from the way everyone was looking at me, they knew it too.

"What..." Harry started, walking towards me. I held a hand out to stop him before before I opted to look out of the window.

"I refuse to accept your resignation, Hagrid, and I expect you back at work on Monday. You will join me for breakfast at eight-thirty in the Great Hall. No excuses. Good afternoon to you all," Dumbledore said before standing up and walking out. I sighed before looking away from the window and back at everyone again.

"I'm fine. I'm good," I said, finally deciding to take a seat. "The point of all this is that you should come back and teach. Like I said before, the only opinions that matter are the people that actually know you and care about you. And I can safely say that we all know that you are a good person, regardless of what heritage you may have."

"Yer righ'. So is Dumbledore. Great man. Stuck up for me after Dad went. Got me the gamekeeper job... trusts people, he does. Gives 'em second chances... tha's what sets him apar' from other heads, see. He'll accept anyone at Hogwarts, s'long as they've got the talent. Knows people can turn out okay even if their families weren'... well ...all tha' respectable. But some don' understand that. There's some who'd always hold it against yeh... there's some who'd even pretend they just had big bones rather than stand up an' say - I am what I am, an' I'm not ashamed. 'Never be ashamed,' my ol' dad used ter say, 'there's some who'll hold it against you, but they're not worth botherin' with.' An' he was right. I've bin an idiot. I'm not botherin' with her no more, I promise yeh that. Big bones... I'll give her big bones."

I raised my eyebrows along with the others, who gave me a wide look as well. Ron especially. Because he was the one who ended up listening to Hagrid's conversation after storming out of the Ball.

"Yeh know, I'd love fer either o' yeh ter win," Hagrid said, pointing to me and Harry. "It'd show 'em all...yeh don' have ter be pureblood ter do it. Yeh don have ter be ashamed of what yeh are. It'd show 'em Dumbledore's the one who's got it righ', lettin' anyone in as long as they got what it takes. Yeh don' even have ter do magic ter do the amazin'. How you doin' with yer eggs?"

"We both already have a solution for the task," Harry said proudly, making Hagrid beam.

"Tha's what I like ter hear. You show 'em all," he said.

"I promise you that I will," I said, nodding in agreement.

We stayed in Hagrid's cabin for a few more minutes before deciding to head back to the castle. I made Hagrid a promise to try and win this tournament, and I intended to put every effort into making that a reality. And Harry stood just as good of a chance as I did. Me and Harry were already in first place. And as far the swimming part of the task went, it'd be child's play for both me and Harry. He had Gillyweed while learning Mermish to use his spells properly, and I had the best technologically advanced suit for traversing water. Nothing down there could possibly kill me. Not even the giant squid.

"At least we convinced him," I said as we walked back. Then Harry put a hand on my shoulder to stop me and his other hand to stop Ron and Hermione. "What?"

"What was that back there?" Harry asked.

"What?" I asked.

"The thing about someone faking their deaths when you were thirteen. That's the 'what' I'm talking about," Harry said, making a grim look cross my face.

"My parents don't win mother and father of the year, do they?" I said with a humorless chuckle, causing me to look at them in shock. "Yeah, they're alive. They faked their deaths and I found them. Due to them taking money out of their bank accounts. I was able to track them because of that. And yeah. They faked their deaths and just left me alone. They couldn't have found an orphanage or anything. They wanted to up the ante, I guess."

"How'd you take that?" Ron asked, his tone worried.

"First I was furious beyond beyond belief. The thought of killing them never crossed my mind so fast. Then it changed to sad. Now I'm just exhausted. Like, why out of all people, does my life have to be a never ending cycle of misery? Very few things about my Muggle life are just ridiculously miserable. My parents fake their deaths. My life turns into long, brutal years of vigilantism; watching people die, get tortured, raped. I shouldn't even be old enough to know what love is at the age of fifteen, but I did. And it fucking hurts when you lose that. Now look where I'm at Trying to fit into a magical castle like I won't turn unstable if someone tries to kill anyone," I explained, starting to pace.

"I'm going to be horribly real with you all. You all know that I kill. You all know I have no conscience when it comes to ending the lives of the guilty. It is proper penance for what they do. They don't deserve to live. At all. Because all they will do is attempt to take everything from you. But what you don't have to do is do what I do, and that is torture them to death."

"Sure, some get swift decapitations or shots to the head, but the people that really piss me off... I tie them to a chair and have _fun._ I can a keep a man alive for almost two days without giving him a med hypo with him being in constant pain the entire time. Things like that involving stripping their flesh, pulling their teeth loose, electrocuting them, setting a limb on fire. There's so much that I've done to make a person suffer. Truly know pure physical pain where they've caused other physical and emotional pain. I make them _feel_ what they've done as much as they can."

"The horrible part is that _I enjoy it._ I _enjoy_ when they cry in pain, or just cry in general. I _enjoy_ seeing them cry out. I _enjoy_ listening to them beg for death, knowing that their suffering is far from over. And the thing that gives me the closest thing to peace that I have in this fucked up ball of tissue and bones that I call my head is the fact that they've done something similar like this to innocents, and I'm giving them what they're owed. _That_ is the closest thing to peace that I have."

I stopped and three pairs of eyes were widened in my direction. I then crouched and had all of them look me in the eye. I fixed them with a piercing stare.

"There is only one thing that I ask from each and every one of you. When the Voldemort and the Death Eaters come, and you know they will, I want you to promise me something. I want your oath that you will not be played for a fool. You will not do to the so called 'right thing' to do with the guilty. There is no wrong thing you can do to an evil person. I want you to promise me that if you have the opportunity, you _kill_ the Death Eater. You end them. You cast Avada Kedavra. You slit their throats with a Diffindo curse. You blow them to pieces with Bombarda. You _end_ them. As they would end you if the tables were turned. I want you to promise me that. Because they will come for your families. And they will kill them and torture them. You want that to happen?"

There was a pause as there was an extreme amount of conflict on Ron and Hermione's faces, but Harry's was already resolute. He looked at me and gave me a stony nod. I appreciated the stone look he gave me. I looked at Ron and Hermione, as they finally seemed to realize that I asked a question before nodding.

"Then do I have your oath that you will curse to kill? That you will not capture unless we need information?" I questioned.

"You have mine," Harry said immediately. And the look in his eyes showed that he did. I looked to Ron and Hermione.

"Robert, I'm not sure I can do something like that. I -"

"Bullshit. It's not the fact that you can't do it. It's the fact that the edge hasn't been brought out of you. You _won't_ do it, rather. All of your lives, you've been taught right from wrong. That you should be better than your enemy. Fuck. That," I said in a hard tone. "You know what happens when you spare your enemy? They get back up and kill everyone you love. Even if it's just one person, you think back what would've happened if you killed them. That would've never happened. And you would've cleaned up the world we love a bit in the process. You may not be ready yet, but trust me when I say this. When the war comes, I will make sure that you are. Whether you want to or not. It'll save you a lot of pain. Think on it."

I then took my opportunity to walk towards the castle. My mind was a combination of cold logic and genius, the purest definition of brutality, and a person who loves hard. I loved Harry. I loved Hermione. I loved Ron. I grew attached to them, and I'll be damned if I let any Death Eaters hurt them physically or emotionally because they want to hold onto any morals. I will break those morals down. And I'll shape them into killers. There is a fine line between a killer and a murderer. I am a killer. People like Bellatrix Lestrange were murderers. They killed people they deemed inferior to them. I killed to cleanse this world as much as I could in the years I would walk it.

 _"Winston Churchill said that history is written by the victors,"_ I thought. _"What he doesn't tell you is that the victors hardly ever win by playing nice."_

* * *

A/N: Forgive my lack of updates on this. I've been back and forth looking for a job. So my update time is all over the place. But I finally got this out.

As for this chapter, I really wanted to emphasize the fact that my character is a cold killer. Mercy is a futile thing to him, and the only way to end an animal is to put them down like one. Rehabilitation doesn't help anyone. Proof?

Bellatrix: Tortured Neville's parents into insanity, spent years in Azkaban as a result. Voldemort then breaks her out, and she murders Sirius and Dobby. Probably went on a lot of Muggle murder sprees that we never hear about. If we look at Dolohov, he may not have been seen murdering anyone with significance, but he does help the Death Eaters tear up Hogwarts when Malfoy lets them in, he killed Lupin, and he could've killed Hermione with that curse of his in the Department of Mysteries. See where I'm going with this?

Either way, I have plans to make the wizarding war very unlike the canon one. It won't be good guys against bad guys. It'll be killers against murderers. Which means you can bet your suit ass at least the seventh installment of this series will be M rated given the amount of torture and death descriptions I'll have. That'll be fun. But that's for another time.


	18. Chapter 18 - The Second Task

A/N: You'll have to excuse how slow I'm updating. Work is kicking my ass. I'll be glad when I get my next paycheck. Either way, I'm back at it. Then I'll probably end up waiting another couple of months to update. lol

* * *

"You ready?" Fleur asked

"Yeah. Where's Aurore?" I asked.

"I do not know. She was gone when I got back," Fleur said. Her accent was still there, but the words came out smoother than before.

"Your English is better," I said, making her smile.

"Thank Aurore for zat. She's been teaching me a little, but it is not perfect yet. I just have to be a little less heavy on the accent," Fleur said.

"Well, good. It's a good thing to learn," I said flatly, making her frown at me while tilting her head.

"Are you ok? You've been... reserved for ze past couple of months," Fleur said.

"It's been a rough couple of months. I'll just leave it at that," I said simply. It didn't sound like I was very affected, but on the inside, I was both tired and angry. Though holding back my emotions was what I was best at. You don't shake off finding out your parents are alive within the next few months.

"Robert! The task is about to start in a few minutes! What are you doing?" Percy asked in a disapproving tone.

"Don't try and lecture me, you pompous ass," I hissed angrily at him, making him recoil. "I know what I'm doing, so don't try and mouth off to me like I'm Fred and George. Cause I don't take that shit from anyone, least of all you." He immediately turned away and I sighed.

"One more task after this, then this crap is over," I said, rubbing my temples.

"What are you doing for ze task? Not trying to lecture you or anything, but..." Fleur said quickly, but I waved a dismissive hand.

"I can read people well. You have no reason to reinforce that statement. I know your intentions are genuine curiosity. But this is it," I said, pulling out a disk the size of a coaster from out of my pocket.

"A disk?" she questioned with a raised eyebrow.

"You'll see," I said simply.

"Champions!" Dumbledore exclaimed. I immediately walked over to the pier and Harry proudly displayed his batch of gillyweed with a grin. I nodded in satisfaction.

Bagman started spacing us out, and I could see out of the corner of my eye that some people were laughing and pointing at me. I rolled my eyes. When would these people learn that I always came up with a plan?

As soon Bagman gave the signal for us to go, I placed the disk on my chest. It stayed there until the metal started to expand. It molded onto every centimeter of my body, forming into the suit that I had finished a while back. That started a type of whisper before I dived into the lake with everyone else.

 _"Now to scan the lake..."_ I thought, directing my computer to do just that. I was going to take full advantage of the fact that they were letting me use anything at my disposal for this job. There's nothing they can give me that billions of dollars of equipment can't handle. A suit that can survive in every single situation, enough weaponry and armor in it to take on an entire city's worth of forces, and the plane that was scanning the lake for human signatures was definitely more than way too good.

Quickly, the scan picked up a bunch of bodies floating around one section. But, not all of them were human. Their skeletal systems were completely different. But there were some there that actually were human. So I think the purpose was the people we had to save were at the edge of this lake. Five hostages, one for each champion.

Hitting the thrusters on my boots, I sped off towards the signal at a fast speed. This was several times faster than gillyweed swimming, and there wasn't really a faster way to travel through water magically. Unless you could fly a Firebolt underwater. That's minus the fact that no one had a surefire way to track the others. I was definitely going to be the fastest out of everyone, given my resources.

Getting there was about as easy as finding them. Not a single thing under here could catch up to anything that was akin to the speed of a missile. Probably faster. I smiled to myself. Shows people that you don't underestimate technology. There were a lot of things I could do better than magic with technology given the level that it was currently at. Maybe not so much before I came along, but now, technology was impressive. And it could compete with magical stuff.

The area that each of the hostages were kept at seemed to have been like some sort of village for the merpeople. I armed the wrist cannons that were built into the suit, but I didn't need them. The curious looks and slightly fearful looks that I got were a sign that they had never seen anything like this before. They probably knew every magical method to travel underwater known to man. But they didn't know about regular man's way to travel. Then again, to be fair, I was no ordinary man.

All five of the hostages were tied to the base of the statue: Ron, Hermione, Cho, Aurore, and what looked liked Fleur's little sister. Fleur's sister was obviously Fleur's hostage, Cho's being Cedric's. The problem was figuring out which one was mine. I had a tie to these last three people. Krum, Harry, and me were the last people who had a hostage.

 _"Krum doesn't know Ron or Aurore, so I believe they wanted Hermione to be his hostage considering he went to the dance with her. As for Harry, he doesn't really know Aurore like I do. So Ron is his hostage. Which means Aurore is my hostage,"_ I said before I summoned a Dragon's Teeth sword to my hand, which sliced through Aurore's bindings like a hot knife through butter. The sunken look on her face certainly wasn't very comforting, but the steady rise of her chest showed that she was alive. I had no idea how they were keeping them alive though.

The thrusters facing upward, I held Aurore in a bridal type fashion as I boosted the both of us to the surface. There was a exclaim of surprise from the crowd when the first thing they saw was a metal man with red eyes carrying a person in his arms. I lowered myself down to the dock, and Aurore immediately came to, spluttering from all the water in her face.

"Uh... what?" she said blinking fast.

"You're ok," I said, making her eyes widen.

"Thank you, but... who are you?" Aurore asked, making me shake my head.

"Oh, right. Voice modulator," I said, hitting a part on the side of my mask to make the front of it mold back into the metal at will.

"Oh, of course it's you," Aurore said as I began to walk towards the medical tent.

"You expected any other charming individual in a technologically advanced suit?" I said with a grin.

"Charming is pushing it," Aurore said with a grin as I sat her down on of the beds.

"I can put you back in the lake, you know," I threatened jokingly.

"You win," Aurore said, raising her hands as Madam Pomfrey came to help Aurore.

"I'll wait in the front. Join me once Warden Pomfrey says you're free," I said with a jerk of the head in her direction.

"What was that, Mr. Morgan?" Pomfrey said.

"Oh nothing," I said, giving Aurore a smirk. I saw her duck her head down to stifle a laugh.

 _"The Beauxbatons Champion, Miss Delacour, has unfortunately been forced to retire. And she will take no further part in this task,"_ Dumbledore said over the intercom, almost immediately after I came out of the tent. I turned around and saw that Fleur was unconscious and being helped to the medical wing by a floating stretcher.

I followed the stretcher in before helping her on a bed. There were a few scratches on her face, but otherwise she was unharmed. Looks like it was a grindylow that got her. Scratch marks line up with the claws.

She suddenly shot up and I had to back up a few inches to avoid her knocking her head into the side of my metal helmet. Then she looked at me, and her look turned wild and panicked while she quickly tried to get up like the bed she was lying in was about to set her on fire.

"Fleur, calm down!" I exclaimed, holding her down to keep her there.

"No! Gabrielle will..."

"They're not going to let anyone die. The message is all about giving you the motivation to try your hardest. Believe me, you have nothing to worry about concerning Gabrielle. Alright?" I said in a voice as calm as I could. I could see her relax somewhat, but her nails were still digging into her palm.

"Now relax _chéri._ Shell be fine," I said calmly before shaking my head at the word. "Great. Now I'm the ultimate mix of American, French, and Britain culture." Fleur let out a small laugh, and her nails removed themselves from her palms. She was relaxing now.

"You never called me darling," Aurore said with a smirk as she pulled a seat up next to Fleur.

"I'm sure you'd prefer _séductrice_ ," I said flatly.

"I can work with seductress," Aurore said, flipping her wet hair in my face. I caught the strands before they did. "Oops."

"I have no intentions on being slapped by that wet mop," I said, making her whack my arm while Fleur laughed loudly. She's come a long way from the person hiding behind a mask of superficiality. But Aurore was still Aurore. And that was certainly something.

The three of us kept talking until the next champion came out of the lake, which was Harry. I immediately raised my hands high and clapped for him. I noticed that he stayed in the water because the gillyweed had not yet worn off.

"How do you feel?" I asked Ron as he stepped in the tent.

"Wet and cold," he said.

"Sounds about right," I said before turning to the girls and gesturing my head towards the exit. "Come on. Let's go see about everyone."

Cedric came out of the lake shortly after Harry, helping Cho to land with his Bubble Head charm disappearing. Finally, Krum came out, his shark head fading shortly after hitting the surface. I lowered both of my hands to pull both and Hermione to the surface. Krum then looked at me.

"You are very strong," he said.

"Thank all the hours in the gym plus bio-enhancers," I said before looking to Hermione. "Cold?"

"Very. Excellent job though," Hermione said, grabbing the sides of both her arms. Then suddenly, the water was gone.

"Warming charms are great," Harry said, grinning widely. "This would've been a nightmare with glasses. Praise melding contacts."

"Glad you find a use for them," I said with a satisfied nod. Harry was smiling at least until Krum asked Hermione for a word.

"He likes her, doesn't he?" Aurore said.

"It's painfully obviously to everyone who's not those two," I said as I turned my suit back into its disk form. I ignored the slight glare Harry gave me. "Come on. They're almost done with the results."

"Ladies and gentlemen, we have reached our decision. Merchieftainess Murcus has told us exactly what happened at the bottom of the lake, and we have therefore decided to award marks out of fifty for each of the champions, as follows..." Bagman trailed as we approached.

"Fleur Delacour, though she demonstrated excellent use of the Bubble-Head Charm, was attacked by grindylows as she approached her goal, and failed to retrieve her hostage. We award her twenty-five points." There was polite applause from the stands.

"I deserved zero," Fleur said, shaking her head.

"Well, they don't give nothing for something," I said fairly.

"Viktor Krum used an incomplete form of Transfiguration, which was nevertheless effective, and was the last person to return with his hostage. We award him thirty five points." Karkaroff didn't look happy. Which in turn, made me very happy. His champion was behind for the last task. Perfect.

"Cedric Diggory, who also used the Bubble-Head Charm, was the third person to return with his hostage, though he returned one minute outside the time limit of an hour." Enormous cheers from the Hufflepuffs. "We therefore award him forty points."

"Mr. Potter used gillyweed to great effect and was the second to return with his hostage while staying within the time limit. We award him forty eight points." The Gryffindors of the crowd started going crazy and Harry grinned as he raised a hand in the air in victory.

"Mr. Morgan was the first to return with his hostage, coming back within eighteen minutes using an impressive suit of Muggle made armor. We award him fifty points." Fleur, Harry, and Aurore all clapped hard next to me while a lot of the Hogwarts crowd started cheering. Even members of other schools were cheering. I couldn't resist smiling. These people actually thought my lack of magic put me at a disadvantage. They don't seem to understand that I was perhaps at more of an advantage than the people with magic were.

"The third and final task will take place at dusk on the twenty-fourth of June. The champions will be notified of what is coming precisely one month beforehand. Thank you all for your support of the champions," Bagman finished.

"That's done," I said, the suit going back into its disk form upon my thoughts wishing it so. Being able to control technology with brainwaves alone was so useful.

"That's impressive," Aurore said.

"Why thank you," I said, making the disk disappear. "Now I would think the both of you would want a change of clothes."

"Why, you sound like you want to help me out of them," Aurore said with a smirk.

"Pardon? Did we hear that correctly?" George said, walking up to us with his twin. I don't think Aurore was expecting anyone to hear that, given the way she turned away in a somewhat embarrassed fashion. Fleur's cheeks took on a light pink tinge, but she managed a small glare at the two of them.

"Get out of here you numbskulls," I said.

"Oh, but of course. After all you have two French beauties to... what was that, George?" Fred said rhetorically, looking to his twin. I then gave Aurore and Fleur the signal for one moment as I cracked my knuckles.

"Oh, that's right! Help out of their cloth- yikes!" That yikes was me running the both of them down like an angry bull. I've lost count as to how many times we've done this. It's starting to become a trend.


	19. Chapter 19 - Talking With Snuffles

A/N: Sorry I haven't updated in a while. Working makes me lazy when it comes to Fanfiction sometimes.

* * *

"You can't do anything about this?" Harry asked.

"While I swore to break her face if she posted anything untruthful, under technicality, she did say this was nothing but speculation. Believe me, I really want to hurt her. But I wouldn't really be in the right if I did. And she knows the speculation alone will be enough to get people talking," I said bitterly. We were in the middle of Snape's class, but the article was an unpleasant surprise to start the day.

"He doesn't need to do anything about it. I couldn't care less about this piece of shit article," Hermione said, burning the newspaper with a distasteful expression on her face. "What I'm more focused is that how she knew that Krum asked me to visit him over the summer."

"What?" Ron asked.

"He asked me as soon as he pulled me to the side. She wasn't anywhere nearby, so how did she find out about that?" Hermione questioned. "You think she has an Invisibility Cloak or something?"

"I doubt it. They aren't exactly easy to come by. I doubt she has the skill for a Disillusionment Charm," Harry said.

"Never underestimate your opponent Harry. It's a great way to meet your downfall. But I suppose..."

"As fascinating as your conversation may seem Mr. Morgan, I would suggest for you to pay attention to what's going on in my class at this moment in time," Snape said in his icy tone that was starting to become a trademark of his.

"Yes sir," I said before eyeing the others to do the same.

At some point during the class, there was a knock on the door. I looked up and Karkaroff was standing there with an agitated look as he was twirling his goatee.

"We need to talk," Karkaroff as soon as he reached Snape.

"I'll talk to you after my lesson, Karkaroff," Snape muttered, but Karkaroff interrupted him.

"I want to talk now, while you can't slip off, Severus. You've been avoiding me."

"After the lesson," Snape snapped.

Unfortunately, the class seemed to pass by slower as we were waiting for what Karkaroff had to say. The four of us were working, but our eyes kept darting to Karkaroff's expression. He looked worried, but Snape looked pissed.

Right as the bell rang, I made sure to stick a bug to the wall of the classroom. I then plugged my headphones into my phone before playing the audio through them, giving the others a signal to wait.

"What's so urgent?" Snape hissed to Karkaroff.

"This," Karkaroff said. I cut on the camera portion on the bug, and it panned over to see that Karkaroff was showing Snape something on his arm. Likely his Dark Mark. They were both former Death Eaters, so whatever was going on with their Marks, it definitely had something to do with Voldemort.

"Well? Do you see? It's never been this clear, never since..."

"Put it away!"

"But you must have noticed..."

"Karkaroff, I _have_ noticed. I'm not an imbecile. But I know exactly what I am doing if worse comes worst. You're only talking to me because I you are unsure if _you_ do. After all, you know where you stand with the Dark Lord. You know what you did," Snape said. I saw Karkaroff pale immediately. His words were enough to make Karkaroff stride out the room.

I hit a button my phone, and the bug disappeared from an internal molecular breakdown. Silent and couldn't be traced. It was nice to know how to control things on a molecular scale. Made for the best tech.

"What'd you hear?" Harry asked.

"Not out here. We could be overheard," I said, barely moving my lips. "We can talk when Sirius gets down here."

* * *

"So Karkaroff's worried about Voldemort's possible return? I mean, we all knew it was a matter of time," Sirius said. He had finally gotten down here, and was hiding in a cave along. I would've preferred if he stayed down at my place, but if something did happen involving the tournament, he wanted to get involved immediately. I couldn't really deny him.

"Yes, but by whatever their Marks are relaying to them, it's going to be sooner than later," I told him. "And I don't know about you, but I have an uneasy feeling it's tied to this tournament."

"You're more than likely not wrong, but the only thing we can do is wait to see what's going to happen. I'm more focused on the stuff we can probably find answers to," Sirius said, throwing the Prophets down about Bertha Jorkins and Crouch's sickness. "Let's start with Crouch. What's the deal here? The papers make it sound like he's deathly ill or something."

"My brother is Crouch's personal assistant," Ron informed Sirius. "He says Crouch is suffering from overwork."

"Mind you, he didn't look very good that night our names came out of the Goblet. But no amount of overwork will cause you to go MIA for this long. Take it from a guy who speaks from experience. I've worked days in a row trying to perfect teleportation tech. After a couple of days of rest, I was one hundred percent again. There's more to this than simple overwork," I explained with a simple frown.

"He's right. And considering Crouch's reputation, the day he takes a day off work is a day I call Snape the best friend I've ever had," Sirius said.

"Getting his comeuppance for sacking Winky, isn't he?" Hermione said with an edge to her voice. "I bet he wishes he hadn't done it now - bet he feels the difference now she's not there to look after him." I rolled my eyes at her attitude of still defending the elf.

"Be lucky the elf was sacked. I was tempted to kill her," I said, grabbing a chicken wing.

"Why's that?" Sirius asked curiously.

"Winky knows who the person who cast the Dark Mark was. But for whatever reason, she was forbidden to say it," I told him.

"Well, for elves, their master's word is law. So she would have to take orders from someone who was in the family. It has to be Crouch himself because pretty much all of his family is dead. My question is why Crouch would protect someone who was obviously an old servant of Voldemort. Especially since he hated the Death Eaters with a passion," Crouch said.

"I heard about Crouch. I don't necessarily disagree with his tactics during the war," I said.

"Some would argue with you about that," Sirius said.

"So you know Crouch, do you?" Ron asked. Just then, Sirius' face darkened. It was the kind of dark intent of a murderer from the way his eyes looked.

"Oh I know Crouch all right," he said quietly. "He was the one who gave the order for me to be sent to Azkaban... without a trial."

"What?" Ron and Hermione said together.

"Seriously?" Harry asked.

"Be glad it wasn't me in charge of that. I would've ordered you to death if I thought you killed thirteen people like that," I said simply.

"Well, for my sake, I'm glad you weren't in charge of my sentence," Sirius said dryly. "But yeah. Crouch used to be Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement."

"He was tipped for the next Minister of Magic. He's a great wizard, Barty Crouch. Powerful magically - and power-hungry. Very outspoken against the Dark Side. But then a lot of people who were against the Dark Side. I'm sure you know what it's like when people have power and are pressured to act." He pointed at me when he said this.

"It either brings out the best or the worst in them," I said, making Sirius nod.

"Exactly. For Crouch, he was arguably in between. He rose quickly through the Ministry, and he started ordering very harsh measures against Voldemort's supporters. The Aurors were given new powers; powers to kill rather than capture, for instance. And I wasn't the only one who was handed straight to the Dementors without trial. Crouch fought violence with violence, and authorized the use of the Unforgivable Curses against suspects. I would say he became as ruthless and cruel as many on the Dark Side. He had his supporters, mind you - plenty of people thought he was going about things the right way, and there were a lot of witches and wizards clamoring for him to take over as Minister of Magic."

"I don't disagree. Personally, I spent two years trying to change things while giving criminals chances to learn. Nothing changed. Oh, but something changed when the world knew that the Vigilante doesn't give seconds chances to animals anymore. Something _definitely_ changed," I said, my tone lowering into a sinister one.

"Like I said, there were people who were for it, and people who were against. And from what I've seen on Muggle media, you've got more supporters than adversaries. Same went for Crouch. But then something rather unfortunate happened. Crouch's own son was caught with a group of Death Eaters who'd managed to talk their way out of Azkaban. Apparently they were trying to find Voldemort and return him to power," Sirius explained.

"Weren't they part of the group that tortured Neville's parents?" I questioned, making everyone except Sirius stare me.

"Neville's parents?" I questioned.

"I didn't mention it when it happened, but why do you think Neville was so bothered by Moody demonstrating the Torture Curse? Bellatrix, dear cousin Bella to Sirius here, tortured Neville's parents until they lost their minds. They're in St. Mungo's right now," I told them.

"How'd you find this out?" Hermione asked.

"They've got archives on Death Eaters similar to how we do in the Muggle world. But they've got hard copies while we've got everything digital. When you find out that the Dark Lord who commanded all these people is going to return, you need to know what you're up against, and Bellatrix is the perfect example of insanity, skill, and sadism. If you can do it, blow her fucking head off," I explained grimly.

"She'd deserve it. She'd completely deserve it after what he did to not only Neville's parents, but so many others during the war," Sirius said with a dark expression.

"Was Crouch's son ever confirmed to be a Death Eater?" Harry asked.

"Apparently he was. But I don't know for sure. This was mostly stuff I found out when I escaped from Azkaban," Sirius said.

"Did Crouch try to get his son off?" Hermione asked.

"No. Absolutely not," I said right as Sirius let out a bark like laugh. "Crouch hated everything to do with the Dark Arts. And when he found out his son was associated with them, he dumped him into Azkaban with no hesitation. It's cold, but it's also an impartial attitude you should hold when you're in a position of power. No matter if a person is a family or a friend, they need to pay for crimes they've done. It's how it goes."

"That's horrible," Hermione said.

"Would you prefer him to stay free and actually find how to bring Voldemort back?" I questioned, causing Hermione to fall silent. "Exactly."

"He still in there?" Ron asked.

"Nope. Died about a year when they brought him in," Sirius said.

"He died?"

"He wasn't the only one," Sirius said bitterly. "Most go mad in there, and plenty stop eating in the end. They lose the will to live. You could always tell when a death was coming, because the Dementors could sense it, they got excited."

"That boy looked pretty sickly when he arrived. Crouch being an important Ministry member, he and his wife were allowed a deathbed visit. That was the last time I saw Barty Crouch, half carrying his wife past my cell. She died herself shortly afterward. Grief. Wasted away just like the boy. Crouch never came for his son's body. The Dementors buried him outside the fortress; I watched them do it."

"So old Crouch lost it all, just when he thought he had it made," he continued. "One moment, a hero, poised to become Minister of Magic...next, his son dead, his wife dead, the family name dishonored, and, so I've heard since I escaped, a big drop in popularity. Once the boy had died, people started feeling a bit more sympathetic toward the son and started asking how a nice young lad from a good family had gone so badly astray. The conclusion was that his father never cared much for him. So Cornelius Fudge got the top job, and Crouch was shunted sideways into the Department of International Magical Cooperation."

"It's sad that they couldn't have done better than Fudge though," I said distastefully.

"That's unfortunately true," Sirius said. "I know you talk with Snape. What has he said about Crouch?"

"Not much beyond what you just. Relentless against the Dark Arts and very meticulous with a quest for that top spot of Minister of Magic. As for his son... he himself didn't know whether or not he was actually a Death Eater. Either he was innocent, or his involvement was hushed for a reason. I can't fathom it though," Harry explained.

"That's certainly saying something. Before Snape 'converted' I suppose, in school, he hung with a group of Slytherins that nearly all turned out to be Death Eaters. They're either dead, in Azkaban, or at large. But Snape is definitely clever enough to keep himself out of trouble," Sirius said rather impartially.

"Dumbledore was a big thing that kept him from getting into Azkaban," I reminded him.

"That is very true. But whatever reasons he's got for keeping Snape around, I hope they're worth it," Sirius said before looking at Ron. "You say your brother's Crouch's personal assistant? Any chance you could ask him if he's seen Crouch lately?"

"I can try," Ron said doubtfully. "Better not make it sound like I reckon Crouch is up to anything dodgy, though. Percy loves Crouch."

"And you might try and find out whether they've got any leads on Bertha Jorkins while you're at it," Sirius said, gesturing to the second copy of the Daily Prophet.

"According to Crouch and the rest of the world, not a thing about her has been found. Nada. Not a trace. I don't like it," I said.

"Me neither. But from what Bagman said, her memory's bad, but I don't believe it for a second. She was a bit dim, but she had an excellent memory for gossip. It used to get her into a lot of trouble; she never knew when to keep her mouth shut. I can see her being a bit of a liability at the Ministry of Magic...maybe that's why Bagman didn't bother to look for her for so long..." Sirius then rubbed his eyes before yawning. "What's the time?"

"Half past three," I said, checking my phone.

"None of you sneak out here to see me at night. It's dangerous. I still got the phone. Just contact me through that," Sirius said, raising the item in question. "And in case I'm brought up in a conversation, just mention me as 'Snuffles,' alright?"

"Ok Snuffles," Harry said cheekily, making Sirius roll his eyes.

"Just remember to be careful. This tournament isn't over until June, and I'll breathe easier when that comes," Sirius said.

"We'll have a birthday to celebrate before then," Harry said, looking at me pointedly.

"Come off it Harry. I don't celebrate my birthday," I told him.

"You should. It's sad that you don't care about celebrating your birthday," Harry said.

"He's right. If anything, we need an excuse to be happy given what's going on. Just humor them," Sirius said, making me sigh.

"Fine. Go ahead. But if you go overboard, I'm going to veto your celebration rights," I said dryly. Harry grinned, but I couldn't help but smile a tiny bit. He looked like an excited little kid with that look.

"You do a lot for us, so the least you could do is let us spoil you for one day," Hermione said.

"I said it was ok, alright? Just don't get ridiculous," I said.

"Just a little ridiculous?" Hermione asked, pinching her fingers close together. I groaned before looking to Sirius.

"Help me here," I said.

"Sorry, but I gotta agree with them," Sirius said with a grin, making me groan. Great.


	20. Chapter 20 - The Third Task

"So you happened upon Barty in the woods?" Dumbledore asked.

"Yeah. Krum asked Harry for a word while I refused to let him go off alone. When we came back, Krum was stunned and Crouch was gone. No idea where his body may have gone. He wasn't in the shape to be casting any spells, so it wasn't him. But I should've stayed with him and had him go with Harry. I would've loved to see him catch me off guard," I explained while my arms were crossed.

"Any trace?" Snape asked.

"None. Not a single hair. Whoever it was knew to cover their tracks. It's not that hard with a decent mind and minor spell work," I told him.

"According to Mad-Eye, he caught a glimpse of someone looking suspicious, but he ran out in Hogsmeade before he could catch him. Disapparated off the grounds," Dumbledore said.

"Damn. So you reckon that this was our culprit or someone who had something out for Crouch?" Harry asked.

"It's unlikely whoever was behind this entire thing with the tournament would readily leave the grounds. His goal is very close. Why would he make such a reckless move now?" Snape questioned.

"Crouch probably had information that would've helped us verify the culprit. To him, that prioritizes seeing the rest of the task. Are we sufficiently protected for the third task?" I asked.

"There are measurements in place to prevent you being severely harmed by any of the creatures, and several teachers will be patrolling the edge of the maze in case the culprit comes back. Merlin forbid we get through this tournament without anyone dying or getting severely injured," Snape said grimly.

"I certainly hope so. We're here to make sure we get through this tournament alive, let alone win it," I said.

"Thus far, you both have done a good job with that," Dumbledore said.

"Never hurts to be on your guard. Potter," Snape said, pointing a long finger at the boy in question. "Stay on your guard. I honestly recommend you practice your spellcasting. You might need it. Remember to keep your mouth shut and your mind closed. If not, even the most basic Legilimens will easily be able to read what you throw at them. If required, get your extra assistance from Mad-Eye or myself the few times I am available."

"I'll make sure to do that. Doesn't hurt to branch out on my range of spells as well," Harry said, making Snape nod in some semblance of satisfaction.

"I'll help. As of right now, nothing else matters more than your defending yourself. This culprit coming onto the grounds and just nabbing Crouch right in the center of all of this mess proves that," I said seriously.

"Keep on your guard more than ever," Dumbledore suddenly said, an unnaturally serious and grave look on his face. "This tournament is almost over, and I will be very thankful when it is. I ask that the both of you stay safe in the meantime."

"Don't worry. I'll make sure he stays safe. Even if it takes my dying breath to make it happen," I said, nothing but determination in my gut.

"I do not doubt your ability to keep him safe. I have worries that you may not make it out in one piece in the process," Dumbledore said in a worried voice.

"If you will excuse my language Headmaster, with everything I've been through, it's going to take more than some cunt with a loyalty complex for the Dark Lord to stop me. I will catch him. And I _will_ make him suffer for what he did," I said, my eyes shining with an intense sadism. Then I quelled it.

 _"But how long can you keep it caged?"_ my mind said viciously. I was aching to hurt this son of a bitch. All I had to do was wait.

* * *

"Faster Harry," I said as I dusted my pants off.

"I'm not going to be able to hit you," Harry said.

"The likely chance of that happening is very slim. I've dodged homing missiles aimed at me, for fucks sake. But then again, all of my speed isn't necessarily natural. Neural experimentation helped my body reached its max potential. And then I took it further. At my max speed, I can run ten miles an hour. At my max strength, I've picked up and threw an eighteen wheeler. It's strength nearly on the supernatural side, yet too limited to be so," I explained to him.

"So all the times you hit something..."

"I have to hold back when I hit or the consequence is very harmful on the person. The only thing I can hit and not at least dent is energy based protection or Dragon's Teeth metal. I suppose I can add goblin metal to that list as well. Whatever. The point is that I'm fast and I'm strong. I have to be in order to be a Vigilante. Genius can only take you so far in some situations. There are times when you just need strength. Now..." I trailed before shooting the ground at his feet, making him evade back several feet in one move. "AGAIN!"

Harry then started to nonverbally cast spells back and forth relentlessly. Stunners mostly. From what I heard from him, they barely even slightly tired him. He was a fast caster; able to flick his wand and a spell would fly from it without saying a word. But there was a downfall to spells. They moved nowhere near as fast as bullets. And I had experience dodging those.

Though his aim was close. And his spellcasting was fast enough to where he could quickly get a spell out for either side of me quickly. Though he might not get everyone with this speed of spell casting, he'd at least be able to put them on the defensive.

We went at it for about a good half hour, him firing off spells and me dodging them. The whole time Harry had an intense look of concentration on his face. While I had headphones on and connecting my dodging to Disturbed songs. Though his aim was great at times where I had to go off track.

His nonverbal casting was outstanding. Not one of his stunners was said aloud, and rather, that seemed to hold his concentration more than when he had to speak them aloud. His eyes were always fixated on his target, or in this case, me. Were his Occlumency shields holding strong as he was casting? I had no way to check, currently. That's what the practice sessions with Snape were for, and to him, they were weaker, but they worked and were steadily improving.

This was how we spent a lot of our days from this point. Practicing his spell work, learning more spells, building his speed and dodging capabilities. We didn't really even have time for our friends given how we were practicing so much.

There was bruising, broken bones, and mind games. Because mind games were going to be a part of battle. In one case, I put an earpiece in his ear while I was talking into it. I was able to synthesize many voices of people he couldn't stand and the hallucinogens were also a help. Malfoy Sr. and Voldemort were often choices. And the hallucinogens just helped with the image.

The mind games just made him even more dangerous. His eyes would alight with this intense fury, and his aim would suffer slightly, but the power of his spells increased exponentially. As would the viciousness of his curses. It's a good thing I was good at dodging. Otherwise I would've eaten several Bone Breakers and Cutters headed in my direction. I must be the only parent who would smile at a development like this. This kind of viciousness is what was needed for the enemy.

"Come on Potter," I said through the earpiece. Today I was voicing Voldemort. Or, Tom rather. "How can you expect to beat me? You cannot even hit me. Weak, Potter. Just like your father. And your pathetic mother. Do you think your foolish parents could ever hide from Lord Voldemort? Dying for you was the only use for you they had."

With a roar of rage, I noticed I had to duck a dark red curse that Harry sent at me this time around, and my eyes widened from what that was.

 _"Holy shit. Was that a nonverbal Cruciatus?"_ I thought.

Ok, maybe the mind games were getting a little out of hand. It's a good thing we were doing all this training in the Forbidden Forest. There would be a little explaining to do if someone saw that.

Quickly cloaking myself, I silently moved around to get behind Harry. He reacted quickly, but not quicker than me. I grabbed his wand hand and held it steady before putting a mask with the cure for the hallucinogen on his face. He started to blink really fast then his arm grip fell slack once it started to take effect.

"Oh, God. I think I lost who I was for a second there. I damn you for being so good at that," Harry said in a frustrated tone.

"Do you hate me?" I asked, letting go of his hand.

"I hate what you did. Not you. Never you. It's just... it messes with my head hearing him say that, you know?" Harry asked.

"And that's exactly what Voldemort will do to you. He'll get inside your head; try and throw you off your game by tossing every taunt in the book he can at you. The best you can do is make the most of that taunting and use it to fuel you. Your aim was off by a bit, but your curses had a lot more power to them. You're using that taunting against him; you're using that hatred," I told him. "Not to mention you stopped playing when I hit you with that last taunt. That's why I stopped. It was getting out hand."

"You saw it was a Crucio curse, didn't you?" Harry asked, making me nod.

"I have no doubt that anyone who was on the receiving end of that curse would be a sniveling wreck on the ground. The pain of losing your family is immense. The hatred at the person who caused it is even more powerful. I recommend you practice that," I told him.

"You want me to use the Unforgivables?" Harry asked.

"You are fighting for you life against these fuckers. Of course I want you to use the Unforgivables. And do you think Snape would sign a letter for us to get into the Restricted Section for us to learn how to water posies?" I questioned, holding up one of the permission letters in question. "I've talked to him about this. And I've taken those books for a reason. You're going to use their own attacks against them. Every single Dark curse we can get our hands on. Remember this: These Death Eaters deserve _no_ mercy. And we're not going to give it to them."

"You're serious about this, aren't you?" Harry questioned.

"Damn right, I'm serious!" I exclaimed. "I want to you to be a good person, but I also want you to live Harry. I want the people you care about to live as well! And the only way you can accomplish that is making sure these scum never see the light of day again! They don't deserve to be spared! Because when your back is turned, they kill someone you love!"

I immediately had to quell the fury and calm my shaking body from my rant. Cruel black eyes stared back at me, teeth bared in a grin. I tightened my fist and my eyes hardened. I made those eyes know pain for days afterwards.

"The day that I lost her..." I trailed as Harry was looking at me hesitantly. "...I had a debate in my mind as to whether to kill every criminal I saw. The stress between that and losing Gwen caused me to literally have a temporary mental breakdown. I smashed stuff, I clawed at my skin hard enough to draw blood, and other things. I had no semblance of any real situation except the one that I was debating over."

"Then it came to me. There are limits to how much a person can take. And what a person can and should do. So I decided. Rapists, murderers, and child abusers were on my kill list. Anyone else, I spared. I beat the shit out of them, but they were alive. With that system, I did more for the entire country in half a year than three times that. The Vigilante was leaving no filth to wander this earth alive. They met a brutal end by my hands."

"The message was very well received. This country has had almost complete peace since then. No one goes beyond murder or rape. Most don't even bother with child abuse because a lot of people would never go that far. But they know what'll happen if they do so. They'll meet the most painful end imaginable. Believe me. Some of them have been recorded and put online. They know. And they always will know that I will come for them if they step out of line."

"It's why I no longer have any qualms killing. Because once I started, it lead to me keeping everyone safe without me lifting a finger. The promises of what I would do to them is enough. Mental disease is a factor that wouldn't work, and that's why I spent billions into identifying and curing it. No other country is brave enough to go to war with us because of our advancements in technology, and civil disorder has been all but obliterated without the need of a tyrant. So what's the purpose of beating around the bush with killing? If you can handle it and there's evil afoot, do it. You're doing a service to the world that way."

"Aren't you concerned that you'll never be able to move on from it? Killing, I mean," Harry asked after my speech.

"I can move on from it. If it's no longer needed, I can stop. I do enjoy it, but it's more like a hobby sort of fun. Something I like to do, but I don't really do constantly. If anything, I'll have a hard time moving on from the memories that plague me because I didn't start killing in the first place," I said grimly.

"You were thirteen," Harry said.

"And I tortured and murdered a man two years later because he killed someone I cared about. What little innocence I had after my parents quote on quote 'died,' would be worth having Gwen back. Cause if I killed him when I caught him, I wouldn't be wearing this damned mask. I'd be holding her close and telling her how much I loved her, not visiting her grave. Remember that when someone aims a Killing Curse at Hermione," I said darkly. I then looked over to the castle. "Enough training for one day. You've obviously got your nonverbal spell work down pat, and you dodge fairly well. We'll expand your knowledge of curses later." I then walked off. I heard Harry follow a few seconds after.

* * *

I was in deep thought as I pondered the information out of the Pensieve as well as Harry's vision from his scar. Bagman was someone to watch out for as a potential culprit. The problem was that he was one of the judges, and it'd be hard for him to be involved in anything. Snape was here, and I told him to keep an eye on Bagman in case he moved somewhere. Never hurts to be careful.

Then there was Snape himself. I had my slight suspicions, but he was doing a lot to help us. Including giving me permission to get into the Restricted Section to help Harry with casting Dark curses. That was something he could've easily denied without causing any suspicion, yet he allowed it. I doubt an able supporter of Voldemort would encourage his enemy to learn Dark curses against them. So it was more than likely he was clear. Not completely off the list, but worth keeping an eye on.

Then there was Crouch's trial. Or Crouch Jr., rather. His father sentenced him to Azkaban without so much as a bat of the eye. The kid was begging his father not to send him to Azkaban; insisting that he didn't do it. And a boy who would be begging like this while hanging around a crowd that involved Bellatrix Lestrange seemed unlikely.

But there was a problem. The bastard was lying. I could read it in his body language. His sniveling demeanor made it kind of hard what was a tell of his, but in his chains, he flexed his fingers a little too much; rotating them, keeping them busy as much as possible. Almost as if he were nervous, not scared. He tried to plead with his father that he didn't do it by playing the scared son route, but his father didn't budge an inch. While cold, that might've been a good thing. At least he died already. So we could rule him out.

"Are you ok?" Fleur asked as I opened my eyes. She was standing right in front of me, her expression concerned. The tenseness in my shoulders eased slightly.

"Thinking. So many things have been going on," I told her.

"You've been training to hard. I see you on the grounds with 'Arry over there," Fleur said, pointing to him talking to the Weasleys.

"Oh, so he's 'Arry now? I'll make sure to remind him. He keeps thinking it's Harry," I teased with a smile. Fleur laughed before lightly swatting me on the arm. I let out a light laugh.

"You silly man," Fleur said before grabbing my hands and attempting to pull me so that I would stand up. "Come. I want to introduce you to Maman and Papa."

"Meeting the parents already. Why Fleur, isn't this very sudden?" I said with a grin as I willingly let her pull me up. She didn't say anything, but her grin did get wider as she lead me over to them.

"Ah. So you must be Monsieur Morgan," Fleur's mother said as I came up to them.

"You know me?" I questioned.

 _"Vous êtes les principales choses don Fleur parle dans les lettres!"_ Gabrielle said in a very excited tone of voice. I looked over to Fleur with a raised eyebrow, who blushed.

 _"Oh vraiment maintenant?"_ I questioned. So I was mostly what she talked about in her letters, huh?

"You speak French?" Fleur's father asked with a raised brow.

"Fluently. I've learned every single language that isn't magical. Those are next on my list after my years at Hogwarts," I told them with my hands in my pockets.

"Eempressive. Oh forgive us. We 'aven't begun to introduce ourselves," Fleur's mother said.

"No need. You're Appoline Delacour and this is your husband, Monsieur. And as I've heard from Fleur, that's little Gabby," I said with a gentle smile, making the child beam at me.

"You do your research?" Monsieur asked me.

"I went down to France once for personal reasons. I visited the magical world as well, and you're in the papers. I just happen to remember everything I see," I said.

"'E 'as... _He_ _has..."_ Fleur corrected herself, making her parents raise an eyebrow. "... what he called a... what was it?"

"An eidetic memory. I can remember everything I experience. Which includes seeing, hearing, touching, tasting, and smelling. All I have to do is think about it, and the sensations come to the front of my mind," I told them.

"Zat's impressive. Nothing like zat 'as ever 'appened in wizarding h'istory," Appoline said.

"Perhaps it really is a Muggle thing. But I was born with it. Believe me, I remember being breast fed even, and it's not something I primarily like to think about," I said with a grimace, making everyone laugh.

"And here I was thinking something like that was what you men looked for all the time," Fleur teased.

"Out of respect for you parents, I'm going to avoid saying a very Aurore level comment," I said evenly.

"Zank you. Because we know of Aurore's..."

"Brashness and constantly filled flirt meter?" I finished.

"Zat's one way to put eet," Appoline said.

"Hey, I can't help it. It's how I am," Aurore said with a grin. "And what are you doing talking about me? You're about as bad as me."

"You did this to me. I blame you," I said with my arms crossed.

"Since when do you do anything you don't want to do?" Aurore asked.

"Point, but your influence was enough to make me want to do it. Ergo, your fault," I said, making her repeatedly smack me on my chest and arms, making everyone, including me and Aurore, laugh our heads off.

"You are insufferable!" Aurore said, grinning widely.

"Hi pot! I'm the kettle!" I said with a grin. Aurore stopped smacking me with a shake of her head.

"I've created a monster," she said.

"Yes. You have," Fleur said. I simply spun on my heel and stopped in front of Fleur, pointing a finger gun at both her and Aurore.

"No shame in my game. Now, we have a tournament to get to judging by Bagman walking to the front. Both of Fleur's parents waved at the both of us and Gabrielle hugged Fleur before we headed to the front. All traces of humor died as soon as I laid eyes on that maze. Down to business.

"We are going to be patrolling the outside of the maze," Professor McGonagall said to each of us. "If you get into difficulty, and wish to be rescued, send red sparks into the air, and one of us will come and get you, do you understand?"

"What about Robert? How's he going to signal us?" Fleur asked.

"I'm sure this will suffice," I said, pulling out a red flare gun and shooting the air. McGonagall looked up as it ascended the sky.

"That will do perfectly. Now, off you go," McGonagall said, letting each of us move forward.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the third and final task of the Triwizard Tournament is about to begin! Let me remind you how the points currently stand!" Bagman exclaimed. "In first place, our most unexpected Muggle contestant with a score of ninety five points... Robert Morgan of Hogwarts School!"

I grinned at the majority of cheers from each of the schools. Even some of the Slytherins were showing some support, which made sense considering I was representing their school. I summoned a gun to my hand and began to stylishly twirl it as I looked at Fleur as well as Aurore and gave them a cheeky wink.

"In second place, with a score of ninety three points, Mr. Harry Potter with an almost as impressive score of ninety-three points!" Bagman exclaimed, causing the crowds to go crazy again. "In third place with a score of seventy eight points, yet _again_ from Hogwarts school, Cedric Diggory!" Me and Harry were among the people who were clapping loudly along with the Hufflepuffs as Cedric grinned at the crowd modestly.

"In third place with a score of seventy five points, Mr. Viktor Krum, of Durmstrang Institute!" More applause. "And in third place - Miss Fleur Delacour, of Beauxbatons Academy!" I was among those who was clapping. She ended up catching my eye and giving me a gentle smile. I returned the grin as I focused my attention on Bagman before the maze wiped my smile away again.

"On my whistle, Mr. Morgan! Three - two - one - " Bagman trailed before blowing on his whistle. I was quickly down the right fork as soon as the whistle sounded. I immediately cut on AS vision and began to scan my surroundings. Nothing thus far.

Unfortunately, as a compass wasn't technologically powered, it had no resistance to the magic in this direction because of my chip that made all my tech resistant to all this magic. Fortunately, I did have a map that was electronically powered, and that was a great way to find out which way was north. Now I just had to head northeast, and that was where the center of the maze was. Right where the cup was.

A distant blow of the whistle let me know that Harry was now in the maze, and for him, I would do my damndest to win this so the bastard wouldn't have any chance of getting him killed.

I was stopped in my tracks by a red headed woman lying on the ground in front of me. Grotesquely, her body began to rise while her head was still tilted back in an unnatural fashion before it snapped forward to look at me, her eyes gaunt and her clothes bloody. Soon after, another whistle sounded. Cedric now joined the fray.

 _"Boggart,"_ I thought before I summoned a grenade launcher and blasted at it. The boggart that was posing as Gwen immediately disappeared with there being a small fire on the ground where I fired the grenade. _"Weak."_

Eventually, I ran through some kind of strange golden mist that was in front of me. Immediately, the entire world went upside down. It was as if the entire world did a one eighty. The blood was quickly rushing to my head, so this illusion was actually kind of real. Impressive.

Raising one of my feet and readying my grapple gun just in case I needed it, I took a step forward. No troubles. I continued walking forward as I were still on solid ground, I kept walking. But then there was a large blast of fire in front of me that made me flip backwards. As I looked up, my eyes widened.

 _"So that's why Hagrid wanted us to pay attention to these things,"_ I thought as I was looking up at a Blast Ended Skrewt.

The thing was ten feet long with a very scorpion like appearance. What I was eyeing mostly was that armor. It looked fairly strong. So I drew my goblin sword. When it came to magical creatures, I didn't want to take any risks trying my Dragon Teeth metal. I didn't know if this stuff would actually be able to withstand it. The best part was that I had to fight this thing while upside down.

Jumping out of the way of another thing of fire it threw at me, I jumped at it, twirling to the side while in the air to dodge its stinger that it launched at me. I had to put my hands on its pincer to propel myself further up before I ended up on top of it. I dodged its stinger, which couldn't even dent its own armor from how strong it was. I then impaled the sword in the thing's armor with all of the force that I had.

It had an immediate effect; the Skrewt screeched from the force of the blow while the blade started to created a sort of divide in its armor. Dodging its tail again, it hit the divided section of the armor, but only caused it to impale its fleshy underside from how deep it forced the armor back in.

Pulling the weakened armor out of its skin with force, I peeled the armor away while it was screeching in pain from having its armor, which was almost like a second skin, forcibly torn off of its body. The only bits of his armor that weren't divided from his skin was like two feet of armor on each side of it.

"Your lessons were not fun. Adios bitch," I said before summoning two pounds of C4 in one hand before cutting open its vulnerable flesh skin with the sword, leaving a torn patch of skin that would fit it perfectly. Dodging backwards from its tail in a type of relaxed fashion, I saw it fire, well, fire at the part where I just was. The fire instantly detonated the C4, and I could feel some of the brunt of the explosion given the way my shield shimmered like a faulty light as I flew back from the force.

I instantly rose to my feet and I saw that grayish skin, blood, and armor was falling from the sky. Or rather, away from it. I caught a piece of the armor and, because of some strange curiosity, I bit on it and tried to bend it. I had to put a little force into it, but it bent slightly. Then again, it was weakened by a goblin made sword and two pounds of C4.

"Least I know Hagrid won't be breeding more," I said before tossing the armor to the side carelessly. After a few more steps, the world was righted and blood stopped rushing to my head. I sighed. Now I could think a little more clearly.

Judging by how there was a lack of a whistle as I continued forward, I must have missed it given my battle with the Skrewt. So Fleur was already in here. I had to have been getting closer. I don't think they would've expected someone to get past that thing considering you had to do it while you were upside down. But no matter. I was ready to continue.

Then something caused me to freeze. A scream. A female scream to be specific. My head darted in that direction and I quickly followed. Given how things were, I wouldn't put it past the culprit to somehow get here.

I immediately saw Fleur's body lying on the ground, and before my body could even begin to assume the worst, I saw her chest was moving up and down ever so slightly. So she was alive. The Death Eater obviously doesn't care to take the lives of these people. He just wants Harry. And perhaps me. That's the way I would prefer it. Well, more like if it was just me or no one at all, but that's besides the point. I sent up a red flare near her body before continuing forward.

"What are you doing? What the hell d'you think you're doing?" I suddenly heard Cedric yell.

"Crucio!"

 _"Krum,"_ I thought as I took off running in that direction. But I was blocked off by a wall of shrubbery. I summoned an incendiary shotgun, and the flaming shells of the weapon incinerated all of what I was aiming at as I went through the hole. All I had to do was turn left and there I saw Krum with his wand over Cedric.

Taking quick aim and forcing myself not to go for a kill shot, I hit Krum's wand hand and leg to force him into a kneel and leave him wandless. With a nonelemental gun, of course.

Right as I did that, a jet of red flew towards Krum and stunned him immediately I turned with my weapon aimed in that direction, but it was only Harry. Well, not quite Harry. He had a grim look on his face that was quite unlike the regular Harry.

"I saw his eyes. Someone Imperized him," he said.

"Probably the guy causing all this mess," I said bitterly.

"You think someone did this to him?" Cedric asked.

"I'm sure of it. An Unforgivable gives you a life sentence is Azkaban. I doubt Krum wants to win the cup that bad," I told him.

"Good point. Well, we better get on then," Cedric said.

"What's the point? There's someone in here who's using Unforgivables. Our chances are better if we stay together," Harry said.

"He's right. I found Fleur stunned and I sent up a flare for her. It's just us now, and I don't care who wins. I just want us to get out of this alive," I told him with a deathly serious stare. Harry's expression was a mirror of mine before Cedric nodded in agreement.

We continued walking forward, and Cedric's vision seemed to be flicking from the both of us as if we were going to turn on him and do the same thing that Krum did. I don't blame him for being on guard after that. But I noticed he was trembling slightly.

"Hold on," I said, making the both of them stop.

"What's up?" Cedric asked as I summoned a hypo to my right hand.

"You're hurt," I said simply.

"I'm fine. It was just..."

"The Cruciatus Curse," I said flatly. "There's no argument in this. Stand still."

Cedric sighed before standing still. I lowered his sleeve before injected his vein with the healing substance. His shaking stopped immediately.

"Better?" I questioned.

"Merlin, _loads_ better. Thanks," Cedric said, giving me a grateful nod. I nodded back. "That curse is certainly something."

"It's an Unforgivable for a reason. And you can bet the person responsible for that is even better at casting them. So I think you got off easy considering it was an Imperized Krum. That tones down the power quite a bit," I told him as we continued.

"Easy? It hurt like hell!" Cedric exclaimed.

"Which furthers my point," I said, making him fall silent. Then we quickly had to stop again.

"Three of you? Working together?" the sphinx in front of us asked.

"Acting as one," I said mystically. I said that so she would only give us one riddle. We just needed to get out of here as fast as possible.

"So it seems. This is something I have not seen in quite a while," the sphinx said.

"Will you let us pass?" Cedric asked.

"It's a sphinx. We're not getting past unless we answer its riddle correctly," I told him, making the sphinx smile.

"Very good. Now..." The sphinx stood on its hind legs and started to recite:

"First think of the person who lives in disguise,  
Who deals in secrets and tells naught but lies.  
Next, tell me what's always the last thing to mend,  
The middle of middle and end of the end?  
And finally give me the sound often heard  
During the search for a hard-to-find word.  
Now string them together, and answer me this,  
Which creature would you be unwilling to kiss?"

"Spider," I said immediately, making everyone look at me. Even the sphinx seemed caught off guard.

"Is that your answer?" she asked.

"Yes," I said easily.

"Well, isn't this something. That was a lot faster than I than I would have thought," the sphinx said idly as it moved aside for us to move.

"How did you figure that out so quickly?" Cedric asked.

"Please. That's not even a brain teaser for me. Disguise, secret, and lies. A saboteur or agent of some sort. Add in creature, mend, and you got spider," I told him as if we were talking about the weather.

"You figured that all out as soon as she finished?" Cedric said.

"Just because I'm listening doesn't mean I'm still not thinking," I told him simply. Then we stopped in front of the path of the cup. "Shall we race for it?"

"Like you aren't going to make it there first," Harry said with a small roll of his eyes, but agreed along with Cedric. I was already ahead of them as soon as I gave them the signal to go. I grinned as I made it nearly halfway. This would all be over soon.

But I was forced to halt in my track before flipping backward as, nearly in the process of running, I was nearly tackled into the bushes by a giant spider. I was moving so fast. I guess Spider Reflexes really were a thing given how well it timed its charge.

"Harry get past it! I got this thing!" I told him gesturing him to move forward. He quickly started to catch up as he was way faster than Cedric.

"Are you-"

"Just go!" I growled as I threw a smoke pellet under the spider's body. The spider clicked its pincers in frustration before I turned invisible using my shield. I saw Harry slip past under its body before I jumped on its back. It turned while it was in the smoke trying throw me off while blind, but I summoned my sword again.

"Stupefy!" I heard Cedric's voice exclaim, but the spider didn't do anything other than twitch slightly.

"Not gonna work Cedric!" I yelled at him.

"Suggestions?!" he yelled back.

"Let me handle this!" I exclaimed before impaling the sword in its neck. But this blasted thing did something I didn't expect. It turned its head almost all the way around and I barely managed to move my arm before it got caught in its pincers.

 _"How flexible is this goddamn thing?"_ I mentally questioned. But instead of pondering further, I drove my sword deeper into the spider's neck before turning it. Then, with a push downward, I took its head off. I looked back towards the cup just in time to see Harry grab it and disappear. I sighed in relief.

"Finally. This stupid tournament is over," I said with a sigh of relief.

 _"Avada Kedavra!"_ a voice exclaimed. On reflex, I dodged to the side and drew a gun in the direction I heard the voice. Only, looking to the side to see how Cedric was doing, it didn't seem I was the target. His eyes were blank and vacant; the open look of death that I had become accustomed to seeing.

The anger arose in me fast before I turned AS vision back on, but there was no need. The figure walked out of the bushes after he cleared a path for himself. My eyes hardened and the anger in me rose upon sight of him.

"It was you," I snarled.

"Surprised?" the growly voice of Mad-Eye Moody told me.

* * *

A/N: Had we not all seen this story, this would've been a cliffhanger. But there's still more to write. I was intending on this going all the way to Voldemort's graveyard and Crouch's fate. But I ended up writing the story like this, and thus is the reason we're stopping here. Also, I had a fleeting thought of leaving Cedric alive here. But it died when I thought about the fact that Crouch Jr. here wouldn't want any adult here that could thwart him. So he aimed for Cedric first. Until next time folks.


	21. Chapter 21 - Graveyard Troubles

"It's been you this whole time. You put our names in the Goblet of Fire. You Imperized Krum. You've been the cause of all our problems this year," I said as we circled each other.

"Of course it was me. Who else but 'the great Mad-Eye' being able to pull this off?" Mad-Eye said with his wand out. But my eyes narrowed.

"You aren't Mad-Eye," I said, reading the sarcasm in his statement.

"Give the Muggle the prize! Of course your prize is death," the Death Eater said, his one good eye narrowing. "I put you in this tournament in hopes to remove a thorn from my Master's side. I certainly plan on achieving that."

"You didn't get who Voldemort really wanted. Harry. You think your master would be pleased about that?" I questioned. At first there was anger on his face after I said Voldemort's name, but then his face lit up in a sadistic smile.

"Are you quite certain of that?" he said, making my eyes widen. I looked down at my phone which I had just summoned in my hand, and sure enough, Harry was off in some distant graveyard.

"Avada Kedavra!" I heard him exclaim as I was looking down, but I was already moving. I threw several knives in his direction before drawing my bow and arrow set. He pulled up a shield with a simple wave of the wand before tossing a Bone Breaker my way. He was an able spellcaster, but I have to say, Harry was just as good if not better. If I could dodge him, I could dodge this piece of shit.

"Catch," I said, arming an explosive arrow and casting it behind him. He seemed to reinforce his shield, but I could see the small bit of arrogance in his eyes when the arrow sailed past him. I mentally snorted. Underestimating me just makes my job easier. He's not even trying very hard yet. Big mistake.

"Pathetic Muggle," Mad-Eye's growly voice said as started firing more curses in my direction.

"Are you certain of that?" I said right as the arrow detonated, launching him towards me. In one quick movement, I grabbed his flying body by the throat before slamming him the ground hard enough break his arm, which he prioritized by leaning to his left. Smart man. I was intending on breaking his spine.

"You will _pay_ for what you've done," I said in a furious voice.

"Azkaban cannot hold me. Go on. Send me to them. My master will come for me. You won't change what will happen here tonight," Crouch said, his grin widening. The more time I spent with this piece of slime, the more likely that statement could be true.

"SHUT UP!" I roared before headbutting him in the face and knocking him out. I then looked towards Cedric's body with remorse.

 _"Harry..."_ I thought worriedly. I then grabbed both Cedric and the impostor Mad-Eye's body before sending up a red signal flare. Immediately, I felt the shrubbery come and swallow us up. On the other side was Hagrid.

"What happened?" Hagrid asked.

"So much stuff. Listen, whatever you do, do not let this one get away," I told him hurriedly, pointing at the fake Mad-Eye.

"Mad-Eye? What are yeh..."

"LISTEN Hagrid. Harry is in trouble. If you don't want the person who caused it to get away, keep an eye on him. As for Cedric..." I closed my eyes briefly. "Nothing can be done. Keep him restrained. I have to go."

Waiting for no more sentences from the shocked half giant, I grappled up to my jet, which was floating above me and immediately flew off. I also began to change into my Vigilante garb on the way. The clothing that was provided for the tournament was no good. I needed something a little more secure.

I jumped out of the jet as soon as I was over the cemetery and landed directly behind a circle that I saw when I was descending. I pulled my mask up before raising my head to look at the culprits. Death Eaters as well as Lord Voldemort himself in the flesh. Back from the dead. And those snake-like features contorted into a look of disgust with his blood red eyes narrowing into slits as soon as he looked at me.

"Voldemort," I said evenly as my eyes darted over to a statue. Harry was pinned there by the stone staff. His wand was lying feet from him. I was able to take that all of that in in less than a second before my eyes focused on Voldemort.

"You must be the Muggle that has audacity to act as if he has the right to live among us," he said, his features lined in a sneer.

"I have to say that I've earned the right. After all, I've done things that no Muggle before me has done before. After all, not many of them can go toe to toe with wizards and basilisks, now can they?" I said. My tone wasn't prideful. It was as cold as ice. "Now do yourself a favor."

I then tossed a sword forward. Voldemort looked at it as it flew past him and it cut off the arm of the statue that was holding Harry and he fell while holding a hand out to steady himself.

"I'll restrain myself from killing all of you if you let us leave," I said, my tone still cold. I was met with mocking laughter that would've made me smile if I wasn't so serious.

"Filth such as you such as you are in no position to make demands," Voldemort said as he raised his wand.

 _"Taking way too much time. Perfect. Already he's underestimating me,"_ I thought.

"But I will not waste my time with you. What you fought in this chamber was a mere portion of my strength. McNair!" Voldemort exclaimed, causing the Death Eater in question to rush forward. "Your job is to take care of dangerous creatures, is it not?"

"Of course my Lord," McNair said with a low bow.

"Well, then do your... duty. Kill him or torture him to death. I am not privy to either," Voldemort said silkily as McNair stepped forward.

"Why thank you, my Lord," McNair said with a savage grin from under his mask. My mask completely covered my mouth, so he didn't see my grin.

"Cruci-" Before he could even finish the word, I shot a bullet in the direction of a tree and it bounced off, impaling itself right into McNair's leg. I could feel the bloodlust in me rising fast. It _ached_ for release. It _ached_ to make him suffer. To torture him until he could barely remember his name.

"Since I don't have time to have the fun I want with you, I'll settle for this," I said before jamming a knife into his skull, causing small spurts of blood to start dripping out from the initial puncture wound. I then drew a second knife and swiftly slit his throat. I didn't bother to hide my gleeful laugh as I pushed my face towards the blood, letting every drop of it spread across my mask and sunglasses. The both of them immediately became stained with blood as I let out another giddy laugh.

"My God, it feels good to be back!" I said with a wide grin as I faced Voldemort and the other Death Eaters. I then wiped my sunglasses off so that I could see better. "Anyone else want to come give it a try? I could take you back to my place and we could have _loads_ of fun. That was just a taster!" My voice sounded gleeful with an intense promise of sadism in between the lines. The anger had faded away for now. Now I just couldn't stop _laughing._

"Crucio!" Voldemort suddenly exclaimed, pointing his wand at me. I took the full brunt of the curse, but it didn't stop my in my attack when I summoned my goblin made sword to my hand, the blade poised to strike. His eyes widened for a brief second before waving his wand, and I was forced back. In midair, I summoned my grappling hook to my hand and embedded the hook into his shoulder before I began to pull myself towards him with my foot aimed for his face. But he Disapparated before my foot landed.

Reacting quickly, I replaced the grappling hook with a grenade launcher and fired a volley of them in his direction, which was predictably behind me. He raised a shield to protect himself, but the explosions were enough to break it and send him flying back.

"Bitch," I snarled.

"Kill him!" Voldemort exclaimed.

"Avada..." Before he could finish his sentence and before I could blast him in the face, Harry already nailed him in the back of the head with a Bone Breaker mixed with a Cutting Curse. I don't think he was expecting anyone to react so quickly, so he didn't have time to raise a shield to protect himself. He fell with his skull breaking and falling into strips with a disgusting "squlesh" sound. I had to admit the combination was creative.

"Die!" a rough voice exclaimed as several Killing Curses came flying in my direction. I jumped in the air before my grappling hook went back to my hand and I flew towards the statue. My main goal was to stay moving. If one curse hit me, my enhanced biology couldn't do a damn thing for keeping me alive against a Killing Curse.

"Go down scum!" Harry exclaimed, a snarl making its way into his voice. I heard a groan of pain as I heard someone's spine snap from the Bone Breaker that hit him directly in his back. Then he began wordlessly firing off stunning spells as I summoned a minigun with incendiary rounds.

"Try this," I said as I stood on top of the statue and unloaded my bullets. All the Death Eaters put up Protego shields before quickly Disapparating away from the hail of bullets. I replaced the minigun with my sword an LMG replaced in my one free hand.

"Potter!" Voldemort exclaimed in a snarl, looking very unaffected by the grenades I sent in his direction. Raising his wand as Harry wheeled around, he sent a Killing Curse in his direction. I didn't even need to interfere.

"Avada Kedavra!" Harry exclaimed, the words surprising me slightly. Not only did it take power to cast the Killing Curse, but it also took the intent. The intent of wanting someone to die. And by the looks of things, Harry wanted Voldemort to die. Understandable. Hell, I want him to dead more than anyone left alive right now.

I jumped off the statue to get away from the volley of curses and stood right next to Harry. I was watching as the Death Eaters began to circle us and fired at them to make them take cover behind the tombstones and statues that were around the place. They didn't help much, and I even ended up nailing one of the Death Eaters in the arm. He immediately raised in a magical shield in favor of the tombstone, and other Death Eaters did the same.

"Got a plan?" Harry asked as he and Voldemort began to lift off the ground.

"Nothing other than escape," I said as Voldemort gave some order about them not touching Harry. I guess that's why no curses were coming my way.

"That fig-" A scream of pain cut Harry off, and I looked around to see that Voldemort's red eyes widened in shock. I couldn't say I blamed him. Literal _ghosts_ were popping out of his wand. This was something I haven't heard of.

One by one, figures had started to show up in droves. One seemed to be a Muggle just like me, and then Bertha Jorkins as well. At that point I realized what was going on. Somehow, the spells they were casting were showing the dead. But that meant...

I turned, and Harry's parents were standing around them. To think that he had this many people were dead by his hand. A shadow crossed over my face. One day... one day he would pay. One day he would die. But for now, I just needed to get Harry away.

"When the connection is broken, we will linger for a few moments... but we will give you both time... you must get to the Portkey. It's the Triwizard Cup... It will return you to Hogwarts... do you understand?" the ghost version of Lily told the both of us.

"Of course," Harry said as I nodded. Then Harry's parents turned to face me, smiles on their faces. I didn't know what to say or think about the looks of gratefulness that were on their faces.

"Thank you," Lily said simply before she turned to Harry. "Get ready to run."

"NOW!" Harry exclaimed as he broke the connection with his wand. I summoned a digital pad to my hand. The one that controlled my jet's bombing systems. I spun my finger in a circle that lead down the middle. It'd be enough to distract the Death Eaters if the aid of their ghost forms wasn't enough. Hopefully I could grab a few kills along the way.

"Not enough time," I said as I grabbed Harry and ran faster than he did.

I slid near the cup and had summoned my goblin sword to deflect several Killing Curses that were headed our way. Thank God Dumbledore gave me this sword. I'd have to dodge for ages without it.

"Give my your hand!" Harry exclaimed, flicking a curse past me at Voldemort. The Dark Lord batted it away with an effortless flick of the hand.

Without even thinking about it, I put my free hand behind me and it was grasped immediately. Then the feeling of traveling via Portkey came to me. I kept my feet moving as I landed on my feet with my sword out in front of me. The last thing I heard as we Portkeyed away was Voldemort's scream of rage.

Then suddenly, cheering. Cheering surrounded every spectrum of my ears, and it made my sick to my stomach. The bloodlust in me had died a quick death. There was nothing left but the aftermath.

I got rid of the sword and lowered my bloody mask while slowly removing my glasses. My eyes softened as I looked at the young man that was in front of me. Then the cheering stopped abruptly, then slowly replaced by screams and confused muttering. I sighed in a mournful fashion. Cedric was dead to Death Eater scum.

 _"Another dead person. Not like_ _we're_ _not used to that by now,"_ I thought as I stood to my feet. Dumbledore walked over to us, and the expression on his face was concerned.

"It was Voldemort. He's returned," I told him. Then the expression on his face turned deathly serious.

"This is disturbing news. I had an uneasy feeling it might happen eventually, but like this..." Dumbledore trailed as I saw Hagrid with the fake Moody still restrained. He was just coming to consciousness. Without even thinking about it, I lunged towards him with a snarl as I held his throat with one hand. Either Hagrid has lost his grip or he let go when he saw the expression on my face.

"You son of a bitch!" I yelled.

"Mr. Morgan! What are you doing?!" McGonagall exclaimed as she caught up to us.

"I know exactly who did this. And I know exactly who I want to hurt for it," I said, my eyes filled with hatred at the man who was under my grasp. He was making choking noises, but his eyes made contract with mine...

...and he smiled.

With a growl, I summoned a knife to my hand, intent on slowly removing his entrails and strangling him with them, but Dumbledore calmly put a hand on my shoulder to get my attention. It somehow worked better than any yell.

"I understand you are angry. You have every right to be. But it's better to handle this situation with less people around," he told me. I growled and hit him in his temple to knock him out swiftly before I carried him on my back. There were many people looking in our direction as I carried the fake Auror, but I paid them no mind.

"Let's go to his office. I have a suspicion that some of the answers to our questions are there," Dumbledore said. I nodded as we walked towards his office. It was taking everything, and I mean _everything_ in me not tie him to a chair and torture him to death. It was what he deserved for this. Peel his skin off. Set him on fire. Take his fingers off one by one... So many things I could do to him that would hurt him so good. Things that would make me feel even the slightest bit better.

I threw him in a chair before pacing restlessly, flexing my fingers to try and ease some of my sadistic thoughts. Dumbledore then waved his wand over the fake Mad-Eye's face, his eyes narrowed in concentration. Then his eyes went to the trunk that was over in a corner. The one with a ton of key holes.

"Moody... how could Moody..." Harry muttered.

"This is not Alastor Moody," Dumbledore said, standing up straight as I looked at him. "You have never known Alastor Moody. The real Moody would not have tried to remove you from my sight after what happened tonight."

"Yeah, I found out in the maze after he addressed me. He must've used Polyjuice to disguise himself," I said, looking back at Moody's impostor. "And if that's the case, then he must've had him near... by..." My gaze turned to look at the trunk. I remember when I was in here, there was a scream as the trunk shook. So without thinking, I searched his body for the keys to the trunk. One by one, I tried each lock.

"Books... Sneak-o-scopes... Foe Glass... More books... clothes... oh." The last key hole revealed a type of pit with a body down at the bottom. I looked down to see who it was, and this looked like the real Mad-Eye Moody. Missing an eye and a leg that his impostor stole from him. Somehow he was able to sleep under these conditions. Though it was not like he had much of a choice.

I slid down the trunk like I was a fireman before grabbing his arm and using my grappling hook help him get him out. I then helped him over to Dumbledore, who was casting diagnostic spells on him.

"Stunned - controlled by the Imperius Curse - very weak," he said. "Of course, they would have needed to keep him alive. He's freezing."

"Here," I said, taking off my jacket and putting it over Moody and zipping it up. It wasn't exactly Moody's size, but the coat still fit him. "Thermal tech helps with cold like you wouldn't believe. It'll regulate his temperature. But he does need more medical assistance."

"I'll take him," McGonagall said, showing a surprising amount of strength and helping Moody out of the room. Dumbledore then created a Patronus of a phoenix before it sped out of the room.

"What was that?" I asked.

"I needed to send a message," Dumbledore said simply as he grabbed Moody's flask and emptied it onto the floor.

"Polyjuice. Just like I thought," I said, looking at the liquid fall.

"The simplicity of the plan. Hiding right under our noses... But there's nothing to do but wait for the Polyjuice to wear off if we want our answers," Dumbledore said. I found a seat in one of the chairs before summoning my goblin sword back to my hand. He made a move, I would take an arm. No. Better to take his fingers. Pour bleach and salt over the wounds. He would cry out in pain from his pained stumps. I would've grinned at the thought if I wasn't so angry.

Then I looked up and saw his skin was smoothing out, his nose repairing, his hair becoming the color of straw. I then recognized the figure sitting in the chair as he stirred from unconsciousness.

"Barty Crouch Jr.," Harry said as his reversion from Mad-Eye had completed.

"Assisted in torturing a family to death and then tried to plead innocent like a _coward,"_ I said with no small amount of hatred.

Then before I knew it, Snape had strode into the room. He looked at me briefly before nodding and walking over to where Dumbledore was. But he had Winky at his heels.

"Master Barty, Master Barty, what is you doing here?" the elf asked.

"He's the cause behind all of this hassle. The reason Voldemort is alive and a young man is dead," I said coldly as I looked at the insane eyes of Crouch. He only smiled wide before his tongue darted out as he looked at me. The urge to kill him right now was almost too tempting. But we needed answers.

Then Snape opened Crouch's mouth before dumping a vial of Veritaserum down his throat. The insane look in his eyes turned into one more mellow. More unfocused. Then Dumbledore lowered himself to where his and Crouch's gazes were level.

"I would like you to tell us..." Dumbledore said softly. "...how you came to be here. How did you escape from Azkaban?" Crouch took a deep breath before speaking in an emotionless tone of voice.

"My mother saved me. She knew she was dying. She persuaded my father to rescue me as a last favor to her. He loved her as he had never loved me. He agreed. They came to visit me. They gave me a draft of Polyjuice Potion containing one of my mother's hairs. She took a draft of Polyjuice Potion containing one of my hairs. We took on each other's appearance."

"Say no more. Master Barty, say no more, you is getting your father into trouble!" Winky exclaimed, but I held a blade to the elf's throat. Her breath caught immediately.

"You are very lucky I don't kill you right now. Shut up," I growled in a cold voice. Winky silenced immediately, but immediately became wracked with sobs. I don't care about the fact that she was bound by Crouch's orders. Regardless of that, Cedric was dead as a result of all of this nightmare of a night and all she cared all about was protecting this scum.

"The Dementors are blind. They sensed one healthy, one dying person entering Azkaban. They sensed one healthy, one dying person leaving it. My father smuggled me out, disguised as my mother, in case any prisoners were watching through their doors.

"My mother died a short while afterward in Azkaban. She was careful to drink Polyjuice Potion until the end. She was buried under my name and bearing my appearance. Everyone believed her to be me."

"And what did your father do with you, when he had got you home?" Dumbledore asked.

"Staged my mother's death. A quiet, private funeral. That grave is empty. The house-elf nursed me back to health. Then I had to be concealed. I had to be controlled. My father had to use a number of spells to subdue me. When I had recovered my strength, I thought only of finding my master... of returning to his service."

"How did your father subdue you?" Dumbledore asked.

"The Imperius Curse," Crouch said. "I was under my father's control. I was forced to wear an Invisibility Cloak day and night. I was always with the house-elf. She was my keeper and caretaker. She pitied me. She persuaded my father to give me occasional treats. Rewards for my good behavior."

"Master Barty, Master Barty," Winky sobbed through her hands. "You isn't ought to tell them, we is getting in trouble..." This time I did cut her. I flicked her cheek, and made a three inch cut, a drop of blood slowly running down next to her tears. She looked at me fearfully, but the fury in my eyes didn't waver.

"One more time, and I take your tongue," I warned her.

"Did anybody ever discover that you were still alive?" Dumbledore asked. "Did anyone know except your father and the house-elf?"

"Yes," Crouch said, his eyelids flickering again. "A witch in my father's office. Bertha Jorkins. She came to the house with papers for my father's signature. He was not at home. Winky showed her inside and returned to the kitchen, to me. But Bertha Jorkins heard Winky talking to me. She came to investigate. She heard enough to guess who was hiding under the Invisibility Cloak. My father arrived home. She confronted him. He put a very powerful Memory Charm on her to make her forget what she'd found out. Too powerful. He said it damaged her memory permanently."

"Tell me about the Quidditch World Cup," Dumbledore said.

"Winky talked my father into it," Crouch said in the same monotonous voice. "She spent months persuading him. I had not left the house for years. I had loved Quidditch. 'Let him go, 'she said. 'He will be in his Invisibility Cloak. He can watch. Let him smell fresh air for once.' She said my mother would have wanted it. She told my father that my mother had died to give me freedom. She had not saved me for a life of imprisonment. He agreed in the end."

"It was carefully planned. My father led me and Winky up to the Top Box early in the day. Winky was to say that she was saving a seat for my father. I was to sit there, invisible. When everyone had left the box, we would emerge. Winky would appear to be alone. Nobody would ever know."

"But Winky didn't know that I was growing stronger. I was starting to fight my father's Imperius Curse. There were times when I was almost myself again. There were brief periods when I seemed outside his control. It happened, there, in the Top Box. It was like waking from a deep sleep. I found myself out in public, in the middle of the match, and I saw, in front of me, a wand sticking out of a boys pocket. I had not been allowed a wand since before Azkaban. I stole it. Winky didn't know. Winky is frightened of heights. She had her face hidden."

"So you took the wand," Dumbledore said, "and what did you do with it?"

"We went back to the tent," Crouch said. "Then we heard them. We heard the Death Eaters. The ones who had never been to Azkaban. The ones who had never suffered for my master. They had turned their backs on him. They were not enslaved, as I was. They were free to seek him, but they did not. They were merely making sport of Muggles. The sound of their voices awoke me. My mind was clearer than it had been in years. I was angry. I had the wand."

"I wanted to attack them for their disloyalty to my master. My father had left the tent; he had gone to free the Muggles. Winky was afraid to see me so angry. She used her own brand of magic to bind me to her. She pulled me from the tent, pulled me into the forest, away from the Death Eaters. I tried to hold her back. I wanted to return to the campsite. I wanted to show those Death Eaters what loyalty to the Dark Lord meant, and to punish them for their lack of it. I used the stolen wand to cast the Dark Mark into the sky."

"Ministry wizards arrived. They shot Stunning Spells everywhere. One of the spells came through the trees where Winky and I stood. The bond connecting us was broken. We were both Stunned.

"When Winky was discovered, my father knew I must be nearby. He searched the bushes where she had been found and felt me lying there. He waited until the other Ministry members had left the forest. He put me back under the Imperius Curse and took me home. He dismissed Winky. She had failed him. She had let me acquire a wand. She had almost let me escape."

"Now it was just Father and I, alone in the house. And then... and then..." Crouch's head rolled on his neck, and an insane grin spread across his face. "My master came for me."

"He arrived at our house late one night in the arms of his servant Wormtail. My master had found out that I was still alive. He had captured Bertha Jorkins in Albania. He had tortured her. She told him a great deal. She told him about the Triwizard Tournament. She told him the old Auror, Moody, was going to teach at Hogwarts. He tortured her until he broke through the Memory Charm my father had placed upon her. She told him I had escaped from Azkaban. She told him my father kept me imprisoned to prevent me from seeking my master. And so my master knew that I was still his faithful servant - perhaps the most faithful of all. My master conceived a plan, based upon the information Bertha had given him. He needed me. He arrived at our house near midnight. My father answered the door."

The smile spread wider over Crouch's face, as though recalling the sweetest memory of his life. Winky's petrified brown eyes were visible through her fingers. She seemed too appalled to speak. There was also that look of terror whenever she glanced at me, which made me feel some satisfaction.

"It was very quick. My father was placed under the Imperius Curse by my master. Now my father was the one imprisoned, controlled. My master forced him to go about his business as usual, to act as though nothing was wrong. And I was released. I awoke. I was myself again, alive as I hadn't been in years.

"And what did Lord Voldemort ask you to do?" Dumbledore said.

"He asked me whether I was ready to risk everything for him. I was ready. It was my dream; my greatest ambition to serve him. To prove myself to him. He told me he needed to place a faithful servant at Hogwarts. A servant who would guide Harry Potter through the Triwizard Tournament without appearing to do so. A servant who would watch over Harry Potter. Ensure he reached the Triwizard Cup. Turn the cup into a Portkey, which would take the first person to touch it to my master. But first -"

"You needed Alastor Moody," Dumbledore said. His blue eyes were blazing, though his voice remained calm.

"Wormtail and I did it. We had prepared the Polyjuice Potion beforehand. We journeyed to his house. Moody put up a struggle. There was a commotion. We managed to subdue him just in time. Forced him into a compartment of his own magical trunk. Took some of his hair and added it to the potion. I drank it; I became Moody's double. I took his leg and his eye. I was ready to face Arthur Weasley when he arrived to sort out the Muggles who had heard a disturbance. I made the dustbins move around the yard. I told Arthur Weasley I had heard intruders in my yard, who had set off the dustbins."

"Then I packed up Moody's clothes and Dark detectors, put them in the trunk with Moody, and set off for Hogwarts. I kept him alive, under the Imperius Curse. I wanted to be able to question him. To find out about his past, learn his habits, so that I could fool even Dumbledore. I also needed his hair to make the Polyjuice Potion. The other ingredients were easy. I stole boom-slang skin from the dungeons. When the Potions master found me in his office, I said I was under orders to search it."

"And what became of Wormtail after you attacked Moody?" Dumbledore said.

"Wormtail returned to care for my master, in my father's house, and to keep watch over my father."

"But your father escaped," Dumbledore said.

"Yes. After a while he began to fight the Imperius Curse just as I had done. There were periods when he knew what was happening. My master decided it was no longer safe for my father to leave the house. He forced him to send letters to the Ministry instead. He made him write and say he was ill. But Wormtail neglected his duty. He was not watchful enough. My father escaped. My master guessed that he was heading for Hogwarts. My father was going to tell Dumbledore everything, to confess. He was going to admit that he had smuggled me from Azkaban.

"My master sent me word of my father's escape. He told me to stop him at all costs. So I had no choice but to wait for him. Without Flooing in through the Headmaster's office, I knew there was only one way into the castle. Through Hogsmeade. For a week I waited for my father to arrive. At last, one evening, the Tracking Charm I placed near the entrance had gone off. It was unlikely it could've been anyone but my father. Though there was no guarantee this method would work, it was the best course of action I had."

"I pulled on my Invisibility Cloak and went down to meet him. He was walking around the edge of the forest. Then Potter came with his Muggle guardian and Krum. I waited. I could not hurt Potter; my master needed him. The Muggle was irrelevant, but Potter ran to get Dumbledore along with him. I Stunned Krum. I killed my father."

"You killed your father," Dumbledore said, in the same soft voice. "What did you do with the body?"

"Carried it into the forest. Covered it with the Invisibility Cloak. In this case, the best course of action was to lie about discovered the culprit and claim he got away from me. Then Dumbledore told me to go and look for my father. I went back to my father's body. I waited hours before I Transfigured his body. He became a bone...I buried it, while wearing the Invisibility Cloak, in the freshly dug earth in front of Hagrid's cabin."

There was complete silence now, except for Winky's continued sobs. Then Dumbledore said, "And tonight..."

"I offered to carry the Triwizard Cup into the maze before dinner," Crouch whispered. "Turned it into a Portkey. My master's plan worked. He is returned to power and I will be honored by him beyond the dreams of wizards."

I watched the Death Eater's face light up with an insane smile while his house elf was sobbing. Hate and disgust consumed my mind like a disease. Dumbledore was looking at Crouch with a similar type of disgust before raising his wand to bind him. But I held up a hand to stop him.

"He's not going to the Ministry," I told him.

"What do you mean?" Dumbledore asked. I gave Dumbledore a dark look.

"Go ahead and wait outside," I said simply before looking back at Crouch. He was still smiling in an insane fashion, and the anger in me flared up even more. This man nearly caused my son to die. _MY_ son. He wouldn't get out of here alive. A lifetime of Dementors wasn't going to stop me. _He was going to die._ While torture was on the mind, I figured I could make this... relatively quick.

"Mr. Morgan..." McGonagall started, but I shook my head.

"Go. I only need a moment," I said, my voice laced with the intent of a killer. McGonagall looked concerned, Dumbledore emotionless. Harry eyed me with the most intense look I've ever seen on his face. It was a cold look that I had never seen on his face. I'd be proud if I wasn't so angry.

"Give him what he deserves," he said coldly. Dumbledore and McGonagall still stood where they were.

"If you want to watch, that's fine. Just don't stop me," I said darkly. Dumbledore seemed to ponder on it a little before walking out. McGonagall still looked concerned.

"I assume you want to watch," I said evenly. Her face turned sad for a moment before going over to Harry. But he shook his head.

"I'm staying. What's another body to add to the pile when you're already had to take one yourself?" Harry said darkly, a shadow crossing his face at the statement. McGonagall's face was shocked at the look on the teen's face. Most people would. Trust me: Me out of all people could understand.

"You have truly changed Mr. Potter," she said, shaking her head sadly.

"Yes I have. For the better I would say," Harry said evenly. She then bowed her head before walking out of the room. I looked at Harry.

"You sure you want to stay? It's going to get messy," I told him. He nodded with his arms crossed as if he was relaxing for a midnight movie. No smile. No humor in his face. Just a cold expression. Exactly how it should be. Even though his death was necessary, I was still going to enjoy this.

I then turned back to Crouch. He laughed as soon as I did.

"What could you possibly hope to do?" he asked. I said nothing as I approached him.

"Go on. What are you-" I let out an angry snarl as I grabbed him out of his chair by his arms and head-butted him in the face so hard, I made him sit back down. I then picked him up by his hair and punched him twice, knocking him onto the ground hard. I then picked him up by the throat with my left hand and punched him so hard that I broke his nose and made him fly back into the wall. I was pulling my punches. I wanted to make this slow.

I walked over to him grabbed him by the back of his head and face planted him into the wall roughly. I turned him back around to face me and began punching him in the mouth with all of the force I had. His teeth didn't even sting me, but soon a bunch of his teeth started falling out of his mouth, chipped and forced out from the gums. I would smile if I wasn't so angry, but there was still that immense satisfaction. My sadistic side certainly hadn't left me. Otherwise, I don't think I would be enjoying this as much as I was. But the anger above all else is what was fueling me.

I then face planted him back on the ground hard enough that I heard a crack of his skull before throwing him behind me and he ended up flying through the exit door. I didn't even rush. I took my time and walked slowly and deliberately towards him as he tried to crawl away in an attempt to escape. His mouth was bleeding freely, and the muscles in his jaw kept clenching from pain.

 _"Where do you think you're going?"_ I snarled before kicking him in his jaw, forcing him on his back. I placed a firm boot on his back before grabbing both of his arms while keeping my foot on his back and began to pull with a considerable amount of my strength. I could hear his arm sockets start to go with a ripping sound. I closed my eyes while I did it; like I was listening to a Vivaldi piece.

 _"Like slowly ripping a Band-Aid off,"_ I thought, unable to suppress a grin.

I suddenly pulled even harder and his arms came off causing me to smile in satisfaction. I could see that Harry decided to get off his comfortable spot and watch from the side. Crouch's breathing was soft, but the grit of his teeth gave away how much pain he was in. And that, by all intents and purposes, was very satisfying.

I turned back to Crouch and, grabbing his head, punched him in the back hard enough to cause a fracture in his spine, forcing him back down the ground. Then began to pull even harder than I was punching before I heard a wet ripping sound and his head came off in my hands. I held his straw-like hair in a grip before throwing his head on the ground like the worthless piece of trash he was.

My hands were now completely caked with blood, and the rest of my body was coated with blood as well, not counting my pants. I stood over Crouch's corpse before turning to Harry, who was watching with an even expression on his face. He looked completely relaxed. For most people, it would be scary that someone his age watched that without batting an eyelash. I just thought that he was seeing things how out of my eyes. Depending on who you were, that was a good thing.

"Come on. It's time for you to head back up," I said, moving over to Harry and getting him to his feet.

"I can't feel the pain from my arm anymore at least," Harry said with a humorless laugh.

"Then it's better to heal it now. Don't want it getting numb," I said, taking out a hypo and injecting him in his neck.

"I know there are some things we'll have to talk about, but for now, I want to rest. It's been a long night," Harry said, his eyes finally showing some of his exhaustion and vulnerability. He did, after all, see Cedric die. He wasn't quite as used to seeing people die as I was. Then again, most people weren't.

"That's fine," I said before leading him away.

"Tomorrow we can only hope for a better day," Harry told me.

But suddenly, I got hit by an intense a blast of cold. It was immediate, and it was unnatural. It was elevated further by the screams of Gwen. I growled before drawing my sword forward and activating AS vision.

The big form of cold that AS made of the Dementor was by detecting its body heat, or rather body cold. I then impaled my sword in part of it before bringing it further and further downward. But the form was still holding, so I couldn't tell if I was harming the thing or not.

"Move aside Muggle! It'll Kiss you if you're not careful!" I heard the distasteful voice of Fudge say.

"Personally, I'd be more concerned about the Dementor Cornelius," Dumbledore said evenly.

"Bring the sword down further," Harry told me. I did exactly that, and a loud screech of agony echoed throughout the hall as I sliced through. The cold immediately disappeared.

"What on earth are you doing? You killed a Dementor!" Fudge exclaimed.

"Probably the first to do so without a wand without the Dementor Kissing the target or it running away. There's no problem. I defended myself. The better question is..." I eyed Fudge coldly, and I noticed with satisfaction that he shivered from the look of ice that I was giving him. "...what on earth is a Dementor doing on the grounds? You know what would've happen if he had gotten near Harry, don't you Minister? As I've had this discussion with you before."

"As Minister of Magic, it is my decision whether I wish to bring protection with me when interviewing a possibly dangerous suspect," Fudge said proudly, puffing himself back up.

"Then bring an Auror, for Christ's sake!" I exclaimed, bearing down on him like a giant bird of prey. That brought his pompous ass back down. "Bring twenty if you don't feel safe! But don't bring those things in here! Do you want to be reliving your worst memories because that thing is skulking around?!" Fudge was silent and looking very feeble as I had to restrain myself from beating the so called "Minister" to a pulp.

"As for the suspect, where is he?" Fudge asked.

"Check the blood trail," I said coldly.

"Blood..." Fudge said, his eyes looking past me. "Oh Merlin! Did you do this?"

"Yes I did. Not like that Dementor wouldn't have Kissed him as soon as you brought it here. Because why else would it continue past you instead of 'protecting' you like it was supposedly here to do. You want to explain that?" I questioned with an eyebrow raise. Fudge blanched.

"You don't bring that and I won't bring up your murder of him," he said quickly, making me nod. Politicians forced you to make deals like this to avoid being hunted by every member of the Ministry. It was something I was willing to take in this case. I wanted to be around to protect Harry. I would already be a target for the Death Eaters. I didn't need to be a target for the Ministry as well.

"But by all accounts, he is no loss!" Fudge said. "It seems he has been responsible for several deaths."

"For once, I agree wholeheartedly with you. Let him rot in hell," I said coldly. There was no response to my statement.

"The only flaw of that is that he cannot give statement as to why he killed those people," Dumbledore said.

"What do you mean? The bastard told us why under truth potion! It was all for Voldemort! To bring him back to power! And he succeeded! I was there! He took my blood to do it!" Harry exclaimed at the Headmaster. Before Dumbledore could respond however, Fudge spoke up.

"You-Know-Who... returned? Preposterous. Come now, Dumbledore..." he trailed.

"We heard Barty Crouch confess tonight. Under the influence of Veritaserum, he told us how he was smuggled out of Azkaban, and how Voldemort, learning of his continued existence from Bertha Jorkins, went to free him from his father and used him to capture Harry. The plan worked, I tell you. Crouch has helped Voldemort to return," Dumbledore explained.

"See here, Dumbledore," Fudge said with a smile that infuriated me. He obviously didn't believe us. "You... you can't seriously believe that You-Know-Who is back? Come now, come now... certainly, Crouch may have believed himself to be acting upon You-Know-Who's orders, but to take the word of a lunatic like that Dumbledore..."

"If you wish it, you can take the memory from inside of my head as he hit me head on with a Cruciatus. That might help with the testimony..." I trailed, my tone icy.

"Or mine, when he cut into my arm to use for the ritual that brought him back," Harry said, his tone being about the same level of ice as mine was.

"And you're, uh... prepared to take the Muggle's and Potter's word on this, Dumbledore?" Fudge questioned.

"What does that mean?" I questioned with a growl.

"It means you killed a man with no guilt whatsoever. He..."

"He what? He deserved it? Damn right he deserved it, the piece of shit!" I exclaimed, making Fudge back down again from my anger. "Believe me, if I had the opportunity, I would do it _so_ many times over again! Because if I wasn't there, he would've possibly gotten my son, _my son,_ killed to bring a tyrant back to life! That is not only worth death. That is worth eternal torture, and that is exactly what I hope is happening to him for the rest of eternity."

"You're not right in the head boy," Fudge said before flinching when my eyes flashed dangerously.

"I am more of a man than you, you pocket puppet piece of shit. So who the fuck are you calling boy? Harry is more of a man than you. Each male in this area that's alive is more of a man than you. I have looked into the face of death and spat on it time and time again. You refuse to do the easy thing at let the people you're _supposed_ to be governing properly know that Lord Voldemort has returned. I implore you Minister," I said, my voice calming down as my tone had turned deathly serious instead of angry. "Spread the word. Let the people know that Voldemort has returned. Or you risk dooming us all."

"And if you're wrong? If you're wrong, I will create a panic that destabilize everything we have worked for these last thirteen years!" Fudge exclaimed.

"And if _you're_ wrong, which you are, you'll risk that madman bringing all of which you have accomplished these thirteen years to come crashing down! People will die Fudge! Do you not care?!" I exclaimed.

"Of course I care! But I'm not prepared..."

"To believe the fact that peoples' worst nightmare has come back from the dead! It has! And we're all going to suffer for it unless you wise up!" I exclaimed.

"Voldemort has returned," Dumbledore repeated from the seconds of silence that we were hit with. "If you accept that fact and take the necessary measures, we may still be able to save the situation. The first and most essential step is to remove Azkaban from the control of the Dementors..."

"Preposterous!" Fudge shouted "Remove the Dementors? I'd be kicked out of office for suggesting it! Half of us only feel safe in our beds at night because we know the Dementors are standing guard at Azkaban!"

"The rest of us sleep less soundly in our beds Cornelius, knowing that you have put Lord Voldemort's most dangerous supporters in the care of creatures who will join him the instant he asks them!" Dumbledore exclaimed. "They will not remain loyal to you, Fudge! Voldemort can offer them much more scope for their powers and their pleasures than you can! With the Dementors behind him, and his old supporters returned to him, you will be hard-pressed to stop him regaining the sort of power he had thirteen years ago!"

"The second step you must take, and at once, is to send envoys to the giants," Dumbledore continued.

"Envoys to the giants?" Fudge shrieked, finding his tongue again. "What madness is this?"

"Extend them the hand of friendship now before it is too late," Dumbledore said. "Or Voldemort will persuade them, as he did before, that he alone among wizards will give them their rights and their freedom!"

"You - you cannot be serious!" Fudge gasped, shaking his head and retreating further from Dumbledore. "If the magical community got wind that I had approached the giants... people hate them Dumbledore... end of my career..."

"You are blinded by the love of the office you hold, Cornelius!" Dumbledore said, raising his voice and his eyes burning with righteous fury. "You place too much importance, and you always have, on the so-called purity of blood! You fail to recognize that it matters not what someone is born, but what they grow to be! The man lying dead before us today was a member of a pure blood family! And look what that man has become today! I tell you now: take the steps I have suggested, and you will be remembered, in office or out, as one of the bravest and greatest Ministers of Magic we have ever known. Fail to act - and history will remember you as the man who stepped aside and allowed Voldemort a second chance to destroy the world we have tried to rebuild!"

"Insane," Fudge whispered still backing away. "Mad..."

"If you do not take the steps Fudge, people will start to die. People will never know what is coming for them." My voice was quiet, but it had this dead quality to it as I spoke. "Their families are going to suffer. They'll be tortured and killed if they don't join him. And the Muggleborns and Muggles, which are people like me, will die anyway. If you don't want to accept that fact, then people will want your neck once they do find out. If you don't want to believe us, that's on you, but you are dragging other people down with you. The only thing I ask of you is to not get in our way."

"And what on earth do you mean by that?" Fudge asked.

"When the time comes Fudge, we will have to make choices. You choose to make the easy choice by sticking your head in the sand. We will do the right choice and stand up for what is right," I said, putting a hand on Harry's shoulder. "Now do what you will Cornelius. I have a son to get to the hospital wing. He needs the rest after tonight." I then walked off while guiding Harry towards the hospital wing.

"Wait," Fudge said, and I turned in slight surprise. Was he actually reconsidering it? That hope died when he pulled out a bag of gold. "Your winnings. "One thousand Galleons. There should have been a presentation ceremony, but under the circumstances..."

He crammed his bowler hat onto his head and walked off. I shook my head in disgust before leading Harry to the hospital wing.

"I'm not an invalid dad," Harry said as I helped him into the bed.

"I know. I was just aware of how close I was to losing you tonight. I don't think I can bear the idea," I said, moving his hair out of his face with a soft look on my face.

"You arrived shortly after the Death Eaters did. That Cruciatus is no joke. I don't know how you withstood that," Harry said, making my eyes darken with hatred. He used Crucio on Harry, did he? Now I definitely couldn't wait to get my hands around his throat.

"Because I have been through enough to where physical pain, even if it's magically inflicted, does very little if anything at all. Pain is nothing to me anymore. At least the physical stuff is," I told him.

We sat here for a few minutes in silence as I continued to watch over him as a father watched over his son. The doors to the Wing opened after a while. In walked Hermione, Ron, Mrs. Weasley, and, to my surprise, Fleur and Aurore. I wasn't aware that they knew.

"Oh, my goodness you two. I am so sorry," Mrs. Weasley said, looking at us with sadness upon her face.

"It's not your fault. You didn't drag us out there or cast those Unforgivables. You have nothing to be sorry for," I said, my tone exhausted.

"You look like hell mate. Both of you," Ron said in a concerned tone. Mrs. Weasley must've agreed because she didn't bother to scold him.

"I feel like it. Tonight's... it's been quite the night. But I'm not getting any sleep tonight," I told him.

"Robert, you need it," Fleur said gently.

"I'll sleep easy once I know he's completely safe. Once I know there are no further dangers lurking around this place. I almost lost him today Fleur. I can't bear to think someone might show up to finish the job," I said, turning back to Harry, whose eyes suddenly hardened.

"You will _not_ lose me. You've lost enough already. I won't let you lose more," Harry said.

"Oh, I wished to God it was that easy son. I really do," I said, shaking my head.

"Mr. Morgan?" Madam Pomfrey suddenly said, making me look up at her. She was carrying two potions in her hand. "Potions for Dreamless Sleep. If you need one yourself..."

"Not tonight Poppy. Not tonight," I said in a tired voice. "Perhaps in the morning when he's got more people around him."

"You need sleep. After tonight..."

"My worries about him will keep me awake anyway. I've gone days without sleep before. I don't mind doing it for him. Trust me. Don't fight me on this. I have to make sure I protect him," I told her, my tone firm. She nodded as Hermione seemed to shut something in a jar with a loud pop. I managed to catch that it was a beetle. Honestly right now, I didn't give a damn what it was.

"Sorry," Hermione apologized as she took a seat on Harry's other side as she put a gentle hand on the side of his face.

"Your potion, Harry," Mrs. Weasley said, carrying it as Madam Pomfrey set the other one of the table that was behind me. Seemingly in case I wanted it. Harry drunk the potion, and seconds later, he was asleep. I didn't bother taking my eyes of him as all of my senses were high and on alert.

"You need rest," Fleur said. "I know you want to watch him, but we can watch him ourselves. We'll wake you up if something happens."

"Go back to your carriage ladies. There's no use keeping you up for my troubles," I told them.

"We care about you, you stubborn bastard. And by the sound of things, you've been through enough tonight. Just let us help," Aurore said firmly, making me sigh.

"If I hear even the slightest problem, I'm waking up and staying up. No questions asked," I told them firmly.

"If you can fight through the potion," Fleur said, handing it to me. "One question though."

"Yes?" I asked.

"Did you really... kill that man?" Fleur asked, causing me to nod with no hesitation.

"I did. Because I don't spare the guilty. He would've done all he could to end my life and those I cared about to make me suffer. I'm not letting that happen again. I let it happen once. Never again," I said as I drunk the potion. "Never again..." My eyes then eased closed as sleep overtook me.

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A/N: One more chapter then I'm ready to start the fifth book. Things are gonna get more interesting. I loved writing the graveyard scene. Just murder of a bunch of Death Eaters, which honestly, is what they should've been doing during the war. Take their heads off. For example, when Dobby went to help Harry in Malfoy Manor, they could've blasted Bellatrix's head off and saved them all some problems. It's a minor example, but you can still see the point.


	22. Chapter 22 - Farewells

A/N: I normally would wait longer for an update. But I figured why not upload the last chapter for this one. I'll put up the start of book 5 eventually, and from there things will start to get interesting. I'm debating whether or not the scene with Crouch warranted an M rating.

* * *

"The end... of another year," Dumbledore said looking at all of us. My attention was focused solely on him as I glanced at the Hufflepuff table, who looked the saddest and most distraught out of all the students in the hall. Cho, who was Cedric's girlfriend, was in tears the entire time.

"There is much that I would like to say to you all tonight, but I must first acknowledge the loss of a very fine person, who should be sitting here..." Dumbledore said as he gestured toward the Hufflepuff table. "...enjoying our feast with us. I would like you all, please, to stand, and raise your glasses, to Cedric Diggory."

I was one of the first people on my feet as I raised my glass and said his name aloud with pride. The only comfort in his death was that he knew no pain. He didn't even see it coming. Though to die ignorant of your own death is a tragic end.

"Cedric was a person who exemplified many of the qualities that distinguish Hufflepuff House," Dumbledore continued. "He was a good and loyal friend, a hard worker, he valued fair play. His death has affected you all, whether you knew him well or not. I think that you have the right, therefore, to know exactly how it came about."

Here Dumbledore paused, and he had the attention of almost the entire Hall with his words. Somehow, in looking one direction, he seemed to have been looking every student in the Hall in the eye.

"Cedric Diggory was murdered by Lord Voldemort."

It was here that the muttering and whispering started. It was hard to distinguish whether they were in disbelief, shock, doubt, or a combination thereof.

"The Ministry of Magic does not wish me to tell you this. It is possible that some of your parents will be horrified that I have done so - either because they will not believe that Lord Voldemort has returned, or because they think I should not tell you so, young as you are," Dumbledore said. "It is my belief, however, that the truth is generally preferable to lies, and that any attempt to pretend that Cedric died as the result of an accident, or some sort of blunder of his own, is an insult to his memory."

"There is somebody else who must be mentioned in connection with Cedric's death," Dumbledore went on. "I am talking Robert Morgan." Immediately, I felt each head in the Hall turn towards me, but I kept my gaze firmly on Dumbledore.

"In the many centuries that Hogwarts has existed, not once has a student of pure Muggle blood ever walked down these halls. Never knew what it was like to merge with our world like this. But he has never needed the assistance of magic to make it through life. This man stared into the face of a Death Eater, Cedric's _true_ killer, and beat him. And then, there is Harry Potter."

"Many of you, as I am sure you have heard through the papers that Mr. Morgan has adopted Mr. Potter. Well, I can assure you that Mr. Morgan thinks of Mr. Potter in every single way as his son. And he was willing to face Lord Voldemort himself to ensure he got back here safely. Together, the both of them escaped him. The love of a father for his son is immense, as James Potter showed towards Harry, and now Mr. Morgan shows towards him as well. He showed, in every respect, the sort of bravery that few people have ever shown in facing Lord Voldemort, regardless for his lack of magical blood. And for this, I honor him. The both of these brave men."

Dumbledore turned gravely towards me and Harry and raised his goblet once more. Nearly everyone in the Great Hall followed suit. They murmured our names, as they had murmured Cedric's, and drank to us. Aside from the Slytherins, but that wasn't my primary notice. I saw that Fleur and Aurore both were looking at me, their gazes sympathetic. No trace of the fear that I thought would be there once they found out that I was who I was. A monster for the monstrous. I was relieved to find that I was wrong.

"The Triwizard Tournament's aim was to further and promote magical understanding," Dumbledore continued once everyone sat back down. "In the light of what has happened - of Lord Voldemort's return - such ties are more important than ever before." Here his gaze flicked from each of the foreigners.

"Every guest in this Hall will be welcomed back here at any time, should they wish to come. I say to you all, once again: in the light of Lord Voldemort's return, we are only as strong as we are united, as weak as we are divided. Lord Voldemort's gift for spreading discord and enmity is very great. We can fight it only by showing an equally strong bond of friendship and trust. Differences of habit and language are nothing at all if our aims are identical and our hearts are open," Dumbledore explained with a type of passion in his voice.

"It is my belief, and never have I so hoped that I am mistaken, that we are all facing dark and difficult times. Some of you in this Hall have already suffered directly at the hands of Lord Voldemort. Many of your families have been torn asunder. A week ago, a student was taken from our midst."

"Remember Cedric. Remember, if the time should come when you have to make a choice between what is right and what is easy, remember what happened to a boy who was good, and kind, and brave, because he strayed across the path of Lord Voldemort. Remember Cedric Diggory."

I let out a deep breath as I closed my eyes. Dumbledore's speech had the effect that I'm sure he meant for it to have on us. It was enlightening, yet uplifting. Informative. But more than anything, a message. Voldemort was back. And he was ready to try and take over England like he wanted to do many years ago.

 _"Like hell Tom,"_ I thought coldly as I looked to the ceiling. _"We're coming for you."_

* * *

"Will you come visit one day?" Aurore asked, giving me a hug.

"Not recently. I've got him to look after," I said, jerking a thumb at Harry. "I need to prepare him."

"Why not just leave? You know what's coming. Why stay?" Aurore asked.

"Because he knows as well as me that Voldemort will tear apart anything he can looking for him. And he's willing to murder whoever gets in his way. He can't let that happen, and neither can I," I told her.

"The both of you are so noble, it's foolish," Aurore said, shaking her head.

"It's why we're in Gryffindor Aurore. The House of the brave and noble," I said with a small smile. "Think I'll see you again one day?"

"If not..." Aurore grabbed my shoulders before kissing me on the lips. My eyes widened in shock, and the rest of my didn't seem to respond. She seemed to noticed, so she backed up. I blinked in confusion. Both at her and myself.

"Why do you do that?" I asked softly. I didn't phrase the question wrong. It was almost like I was asking both her and Tonks at the same time. I was just confused beyond belief. It was strange feeling this clueless when it came to women. I felt like I would never understand the female mind.

"I still got an extra year of school even though I'm seventeen already. Even then, I still need to find where I need to go. But her..." Aurore jerked her head towards Fleur. "...she's willing to stay for you. I'm sure she won't mind if I just stole one kiss from you. Because even if this Dark Lord of yours doesn't manage to kill you, I may not see you again. This is how I want to remember you."

"And how exactly are you going to remember me?" I questioned.

"Someone who can give a damn about the woman herself and not about her looks. It gives me hope. I think Fleur will be lucky. I know you like her," Aurore said.

"Christ, feelings are fucking complicated. The both of you drive me fucking insane, but you're both amazing in that way," I told her.

"Saying feelings are confusing means a lot coming from your smart ass. But talk to her. If anyone's gonna break you out of that stage, it's her," Aurore said with a sad smile. "Take care."

As I watched her walk away, I had to bite down a scream. I wanted to bash my head against a wall. First Tonks, now Aurore, who wanted me to get with Fleur, who I liked anyway. Will things ever be simple with me?

"How are you?" Fleur asked, walking up to me.

"I'm good," I said. I was lying slightly when I saw that. "You?"

"I'm ok. I'm getting a job 'ere... _here,_ to well... stay close," Fleur said.

"Like me that much, eh?" I said with a small grin to try and ease my knot of tension.

"It's not all about you. I like Harry as well," Fleur said with a grin.

"I'm gonna have to compete with my son on this? Damn," I teased, making her swat my arm playfully. But she was laughing.

"That is what I will miss. I'll see you sometime in the future. Au revoir monsieur," Fleur said, kissing me on both of my cheeks. I then kissed her on both of hers in a similar fashion. Though unless I was going crazy, I left my lips on her cheeks a little longer than what was necessary.

"Au revoir madame. Stay safe," I told her.

"Just know that what you did... Perhaps it was for the best," Fleur said softly before walking off. I raised my eyebrows in surprise.

"Will you see her again?" Harry asked, walking up to me as I watched her walk into the carriage.

"More than likely so," I said, cracking my neck. "I want nothing more than to relax on the train."

"Me too. Just a quiet few days before we have to focus on Voldemort again," Harry said.

"That's exactly all I'm giving you. Right after that, I'm teaching you all I got. You're getting the enhancers and all. I'm whipping your ass into shape," I told him.

"And I wouldn't expect anything less," Harry said with a small smile.

As we boarded the train, I closed my eyes and relaxed my shoulders. I longed for a bit of peace, and at the very least, I was able to get it right now. It was lovely. I then looked at Harry.

"Anything in the paper?" I asked.

"Nope. Not a peep. Though I doubt Rita will keep quiet on a story like this," Harry said, putting the paper down.

"Oh, Rita hasn't written anything at all since the third task. As a matter of fact," she added, sounding very pleased with herself. "Rita Skeeter isn't going to be writing anything at all for a while. Not unless she wants me to spill the beans on her."

"You figured out how she was listening in on conversations, didn't she?" I asked, making her nod. "How?"

"Well, the phrase 'bugging' you and Harry threw around got me thinking. It turns out that, going over the details in my mind, there was a beetle in every situation that she got her info from. And as it turns out, Rita Skeeter is in fact..." Here Hermione pulled out a glass jar. "...an unregistered Animagus. She can turn into a beetle."

"You're kidding," Ron said. "You haven't... she's not..."

"Oh yes she is," Hermione said happily, brandishing the jar at us. "I caught her on the windowsill in the hospital wing. Look very closely, and you'll notice the markings around her antennae are exactly like those foul glasses she wears." I looked closely and there were the markings.

"There was a beetle when we heard Hagrid talking about his mum," Harry said, raising a finger.

"Right, and Viktor pulled a beetle out of my hair when we finished our conversation by the lake. She had to have been in Harry's class when his scar hurt, and she had to have been talking to Malfoy while he was carrying her so she could get interviews with them," Hermione explained. "I've told her I'll let her out when we get back to London. I've put an Unbreakable Charm on the jar, you see, so she can't transform. And I've told her she's to keep her quill to herself for a whole year. See if she can't break the habit of writing horrible lies about people."

"Hermione, have I ever told you that you are brilliant?" Harry said with a grin.

"Mention it more, and I'm sure eventually I'll remember," Hermione said with a wide grin in his direction as the compartment door opened.

"Very clever. Granger," Draco said when he walked in. My face immediately formed into a displeased expression. "You caught some pathetic reporter, and Potter's Dumbledore's favorite boy again. Big deal. Trying not to think about it, are we? Trying to pretend it hasn't happened?"

"Get the fuck out Malfoy," I snarled. "I killed that Death Eater, you know. Ripped his fucking head off. You think I won't do the same to your father and all his friends in masks?" But his attention was mostly on Harry.

"You've picked the losing side, Potter! I warned you! I told you you ought to choose your company more carefully, remember? When we met on the train, first day at Hogwarts? I told you not to hang around with riffraff like this!" He jerked his head at Ron and Hermione and me last. "Too late now. Potter! They'll be the first to go, now the Dark Lord's back! Muggles and Mudbloods and Muggle-lovers first! Well, second. Diggory was the f-"

Everything happened so fast, I lost track of everything. I snapped his left leg by stabbing it and jerking the blade while curses flew in their direction quickly so that they were knocked out. Then they were knocked out by the onslaught of spells that came his way.

"God, I haven't wanted to kill him so badly since he hit me with that Bone Breaker," I told him.

"Quell it. The Ministry wants an excuse to lock you up," Harry told him.

"I know. That's why I didn't do it," I told him. "But I have no doubt he's going to be an issue one day. One day I'll have my chance and it'll be legal cause the little bitch will be a Death Eater."

"You're more than likely right," Fred said, making sure to step on the unconscious Slytherins as he walked inside. "No gentle curses here. Bone Breakers and Stunners all over the place."

"I didn't use the Bone Breaker. Ron?" Hermione asked.

"Nope. Must've been Harry," he said.

"Right in one," Harry said immediately.

"Anyway... Exploding Snap anyone?" Fred asked, holding up the cards.

"Not me. Go ahead," I said before closing my eyes and deciding to nod off. We were steps away from war. And in the words of Hagrid, we would have to face it when it came. There was one bright side. I didn't have to train anymore wet behind the ears Special Forces agents cause I would be too busy. Silver linings, ya know? As few as we will have.

* * *

A/N: And that concludes this! I have no idea what I'm titling the fifth one, but it'll come at one point. I can't wait. Thank you for the few people that keep sticking around for the series. The next one will be coming up soon.


	23. Chapter 23 - 5th book is up

A/N: If anyone cares, fifth installment has been uploaded.


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